


Never Alone

by IheartJack0023



Category: One Piece
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-16
Updated: 2017-01-16
Packaged: 2018-09-18 00:48:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 15
Words: 32,241
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9356078
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IheartJack0023/pseuds/IheartJack0023
Summary: In which the infamous straw hat is more than just a hat. [Luffy x OC]





	1. Chapter 1

The first time that he saw her he was covered in dirt. He was cold and sobbing and lost. She was barefoot and wearing a white dress that had not one speck of dirt on it. Her light pink hair sat gently over her shoulders and she sent a small smile at him. 

The first time that he saw her he was eight years old in the middle of the forest of his home island. His clothes were slightly torn, but the straw hat that he held tightly in his arms was unharmed. She knelt down in front of the boy; her smile never faltered. 

"Why are you crying?" She asked him. He wiped some of the tears from his face, smearing dirt across his cheeks. 

"I'm lost and I'm alone," he got out in between short sobs. "I followed Ace because I wanted him to be my friend, but I couldn't keep up." She shushed him softly, hoping to calm the boy down. 

"You're not alone now," she reassured him. "I'm here with you, aren't I? I'm sure that together we can find a way out of here." His sobs died down when he realized the truth to her words. He wasn't alone. There was an adult here with him. 

"Let's try to get out of here now," she said before standing up. Though she had been kneeling on the ground in front of him, her white dress was still spotless and her bare legs still clean. The boy quickly got up as she turned around and started walking in a random direction. He rushed up to her with the intent to grab onto her hand so that he wouldn't be separated from her, but he froze when he couldn't. He froze when his hand simply went right through hers. 

"Oh," she said as she turned back around to face the boy. He was staring at her with wide eyes and she could see the questions that were about to surface. "I'm sorry." She watched him open his mouth, ready to shoot a hundred and one questions her way, but before he could she started speaking. 

"You won't be able to touch me," she said, "because I'm not physically here." She dropped down to kneel in front of him again. "It's a long story and I'll explain it to you when you're older, okay? But right now, all you need to know is that my body is far, far away and my spirit is bound," she paused to point to the straw hat that he was still holding tightly in his arms. "To that hat," she continued. The boy looked down at the hat with uncertainty before looking back at the pink-haired woman. The soft smile on her face comforted the boy. 

"As long as you have that hat, Luffy," she said, having already known the boy's name, "you'll never be alone. After a moment, Luffy placed the hat securely back onto his head. Her smile grew wider at the gesture. She stood back up and started walking again. 

"I can't touch things, but I can still help you find your way out of here," she said. Luffy followed after her; he was only silent for a few moments before he was unable to hold back his questions any longer. 

"Does Shanks know that you're haunting his hat?" He asked her. 

"I'm not haunting it," she said with a sigh. "But he does know about me." 

"So you know Shanks?" 

"Yea." 

"How well do you know him?" 

"Pretty well." 

"Can you tell me stories about him and his adventures?" Questioned Luffy. The woman couldn't help but chuckle at the young boy's antics. 

"Sure, but not right now," she said. Luffy pouted in response for a few seconds. 

"What's your name?" He finally asked. 

"Faye," she answered. 

*** 

Faye told Luffy to keep her a secret. She told him to promise her that he would. So he promised; and that was the first time that she placed her trust in the boy. She wouldn't be disappointed. 

Faye made it a point to only make an appearance when Luffy was alone, which grew more difficult once he befriended Ace and Ace's friend, Sabo. Luffy liked to spend time with the two other boys—his newfound brothers, but he would sometimes go off on his own because he liked to hear the stories that Faye would tell him; he loved to hear about the adventures that she had seen while travelling with Shanks. Faye was careful during these times, though. She had to stay aware of her surroundings; many times had she left Luffy mid-sentence—disappearing into thin air only a second before one or both of his brothers appeared. They often teased him at these times—when they would catch him "talking to his hat." 

"Luffy," Faye had said one day. Sabo was out getting food while Ace trained in front of their treehouse, a scowl etched on his face. It had recently been revealed to both Luffy and her that Ace was Gol D. Roger's son. After learning that he hated his heritage, Faye decided that she would find a way to speak with him. 

"What?" Asked the rubber boy. 

"Sit by the door of treehouse, okay?" She said. "But don't let Ace see you—no matter what. I want to talk to him, okay?" Luffy's eyes widened. 

"But—" 

"He won't know who I am. Don't worry. As long as he doesn't touch me, I'll just be a normal person to him." 

Luffy nodded, trusting Faye's decision. He sat down next to the doorway of their makeshift home, his back pressed against the wall and that hat pressed against his chest and wrapped in his arms. 

Faye disappeared from beside Luffy. It was as if the wind had blown her image away. She appeared again at the base of the tree that the treehouse had been built upon. The freckled boy didn't notice her appearance; he seemed to be too concentrated on whatever his thoughts were so Faye decided that she should make her presence known. 

"Hey, kid!" She shouted. Ace immediately jumped and swung his pipe at her; she quickly jumped out of its way; if he were to hit her then he would be able to tell that she wasn't normal. 

"You look just like they described," she mused aloud. 

"Who?" Questioned Ace, his weapon still aimed at her. 

"Oh," she said, continuing to feign ignorance. "You're Gol D. Roger's kid, right?" She asked with a soft smile setting itself on her face. She watched his eyes widen in surprise. 

"How?" He asked. "How the hell do you know that?" 

"I have my sources." She squatted down so that she could be at eye level with the boy. "I came because I wanted to talk to you." Ace watched Faye with wary eyes. 

"What?" Spat Ace. "You wanna tell me how much of a horrible person that bastard was?" Faye's smile fell at his harsh tone. 

"Don't speak about Roger that way when you didn't personally know him," she chastised. 

"You did?" 

"Yea. I sailed the seas with him," said Faye, the smile coming back to her face. "And he was a great man. He was the kind of man that you would be honored to have as a captain and grateful to have as a friend. He loved adventure and the open sea; he had a way of being able to make anything fun." 

Ace looked torn. He wasn't sure if he should believe her or not. On one hand he wanted to. He liked this image of the man that was his father, but, on the other hand, this was the first that someone had painted this image for him. How could he believe it when everyone else kept telling him how bad Roger was? It was the word of one versus the word of dozens. 

"Why the hell should I believe you?" He asked her. 

"Well, I guess there really isn't a reason," she said. "I don't really know how I can prove to you that I'm telling the truth." She paused for a moment in thought. "Will you at least keep one thing in mind?" Ace looked at the woman expectantly. 

"I'm sure you've been hearing lots of bad things about Roger. Next time you do, think about the person who said it—did they personally know him or are they just repeating what everyone else has said? Maybe they're too simple-minded to see that not all pirates are bad or maybe they're just jealous of the power and fame that Roger was able to get before he died. 

"In the end, it doesn't matter what these uninformed, bitter people have to say. It doesn't matter what they think of him because the people who do matter know better. They know that Roger was a good man and they know not to believe what some drunk, old men have to say." 

Ace was left speechless; he didn't know how to respond to the woman's words. On one hand, they seemed right, but yet he couldn't just cast aside everything that he had been told so far—everything that people thought about him for being his father's son. 

"And the people who really matter won't even care that you're related to him," she added. Ace turned around as he heard movement in the bushes. "You have people like that," he heard her say, but it sounded softer. It sounded like the voice was fading. He watched as Sabo walked through the bushes and into the clearing, a fish hung over his shoulder. 

"You have your brothers." Ace turned around abruptly. That last sentence sounded like it had been whispered right next to his ear, but the woman wasn't there right next to him. She wasn't even in the spot, a few feet away from him, where she was before. He looked around the clearing and did not see any trace of her. It was like she had never even been there. Ace began to question if he had imagined it all while Faye hoped that her words would mean something to the freckled boy. 

"That's all I can do," she thought. "That's the only way that I can help him." 

*** 

When Sabo died, Luffy had cried. When he died, Luffy had had nightmares. And when that happened, Faye had wished that she could do more than try to offer words of comfort. She had wished that she could touch things—that she could hold the young boy as he cried and rock him back to sleep when he woke up with tears in his eyes. 

"I feel so alone," he had said one day after waking up. Ace had left earlier in the morning when the younger boy was still sleeping. Faye knew that Ace needed time alone. She could tell that Sabo's death had also affected him greatly, but he acted strong for Luffy when the younger boy was around. He needed time alone so that he could cope—time where he could let himself be weak. 

"Why? Ace will be back soon," she said. 

"But what if he doesn't come back? What if dies and can't ever come back?" Luffy lifted his eyes from the ground to look at Faye with watery eyes. 

"He won't die. He made a promise to you, remember?" 

"Yea," Luffy replied, his eyes turning their attention back to the ground. 

"And Ace wouldn't break a promise, right?" 

"No." 

"So you don't need to worry then," she reassured him with a smile. "But even when Ace goes off on his own," she added, "you're not alone. Did you forget what I told you before already?" Luffy reached his hand up to set it on top of his hat. 

"As long as I have this hat," he said. 

"You'll never be alone," she finished. 

"Promise?" Luffy asked her, meeting her eyes once again. 

"Promise," she said with a nod and a grin. 

*** 

Faye appreciated the fact that she had gotten to see luffy grow; she appreciated the fact that she had been able to watch him become stronger. And she couldn't help the pride that swelled up in her chest whenever she thought about how far he'd come. She had come to care for the boy deeply. 

Of course, she had also watched Ace grow; he grew into a man that she knew Gol D. Roger would be proud to call his son. But she didn't share the connection with him that she shared with Luffy. She didn't share a special bond with the freckled man like she did with the rubber boy. Hell—Ace didn't even know that she existed. Yet, she couldn't help feeling sad at his departure. It would be odd without the older brother around—it would take some time for both her and Luffy to get used to his absence. But, on the brightside, she would be able to spend more time with Luffy. 

"How are you feeling?" She had asked the rubber boy after Ace had left. Luffy was walking through the forest, his straw hat sat upon his head like usual. Faye walked in front of him, but backwards so that she could face him. She knew that she didn't need to see where she was going because she didn't, technically, exist on the physical plane. 

"Excited! I'm gonna get stronger! And soon I'll leave and become king of the pirates!" Faye smiled at the boy; out of the two brothers, it was Luffy who she believed would become pirate king. She had complete faith in the boy—he never ceased to amaze her. 

"You've got three more years before you leave, Luffy," she reminded him. "How is that soon?" 

"It's sooner than it was yesterday!" He replied, pumping his right arm into the air. She chuckled at the boy's optimistic enthusiasm. 

"Luffy, you are definitely one of a kind," she told him. "But with Ace gone, you'll be pretty lonely. I thought you'd be more upset about his departure." 

"Naw," he said as he placed his right hand on top of his straw hat. He looked at Faye with a brilliant smile spread across his face. "I'm never alone!"


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I placed a Pirates of the Caribbean reference in this chapter. Let's see if you guys can catch it!

Luffy felt like his heart had stopped when it happened. It was only a small tear but how dare he be so careless with it, he though. What would Shanks say if he returned his hat in a condition worse than when he had been given it. 

Luffy tightened his grip on the hat as he wondered if Faye was alright—would something happen to her if the hat was damaged? 

"How dare you damage this hat?" Shouted Luffy. He was pissed—no, he was beyond that. He was absolutely furious. How dare this damn clown—what was his name again? Muggy? Bugsy?--tear his precious straw hat. 

"This hat is my treasure!" Shouted Luffy. Treasure, he repeated in his head. A memory briefly flashed through his mind—of Faye telling him something that has resonated with him since. 

He had been 10 when it had happened, newly turned. He had found a necklace, shiny and glimmering—gold. He couldn't wait to show Ace; they would be able to add it to their treasure stash, he had thought. But as he walked back to Dadan's where he knew Ace would come back to later, it was taken from him—snatched right out of his hands so fast that he had no time to react. He had looked up just in time to see a bird flying away from him. An object held tightly in its talons glittering in the sunlight. Luffy couldn't help it when he let his lips fall into a pout. 

"Why is it that birds seem to be so fascinated by shiny things? You'd think they were dragons or something," Faye had said as she appeared before Luffy. He had looked over at her, but didn't say anything. 

"Now, why the pout, Luffy? What's got you so upset?" She had asked him. 

"My treasure got stolen!" Luffy had exclaimed. Faye had squatted down before him—her eyes at the same level as his own. 

"It was just a necklace, Luffy. You shouldn't be upset over something so insignificant." 

"But it was my treasure!" 

"I know, Luffy. But there's no point in getting upset over a necklace." She had smiled at him. "There's nothing you can do about the treasure you lose so focus on protecting the treasures you still have." 

"The stash?" Luffy had asked. Faye had hummed thoughtfully in return before speaking. 

"Not all treasure is silver and gold, Luffy," she had said. Luffy had tilted his head in return. "What is it that you value the most in this world? What's special to you?" Luffy had pursed his lips, his fingers against his chin in pensive thought. He had remained like that for a few moments before his eyes had lit up in realization. 

"My hat!" He had exclaimed. "It's very special to me." Faye's smile had widened. 

"And is the person who gave you that hat special?" She had asked. Luffy had nodded fervently. "See, Luffy? Treasure can be things that aren't gold—they can even be people. Whatever you cherish is your treasure because it's a lot more important than some silly gold necklace or even a mountain of gold." 

Luffy had nodded in understanding before letting a grin cross his face. He felt a lot better. 

"That makes you my treasure too!" He had told her, causing a light pink to paint across her pale cheeks. 

The memory was fleeting; it passed through his mind in a matter of a few seconds—like when one's life flashes before their eyes. His mind quickly moved back to the present where Luffy held a torn straw hat in his hands while a clown-pirate stood before him. 

"Whoever damages this hat," Luffy told the pirate, "absolutely must pay!" 

"Is it that important of a hat?" Asked the pirate as he sent his detached hand, which held a knife, toward Luffy. It came from behind him, but Luffy was able to dodge it. He needed to protect the hat, he thought. He wouldn't let anymore damage come to it. 

"If so," continued the pirate, "then protect it better!" The pirate sent his other hand, which held three knives, straight for the hat. It stabbed the hat, creating three gashes in it. 

Time seemed to have slowed for Luffy in that moment. Things seemed to be moving in slow motion, but, yet, he wasn't fast enough to protect the hat. He watched as the knives cut right through the hat with ease—and then he heard it: a cry. He wasn't sure if the others had heard or if it was just him, but he knew that the cry was real. He just knew that it wasn't in his head. He heard it just as the knives pierced the hat. Luffy may have been oblivious, but he was no idiot. He knew that that could only mean one thing—that was Faye. 

'Would something happen to her if the hat was damaged?' He had asked himself earlier; now he knew that answer. The hat being torn, being ripped, being damaged—it was all hurting her. Luffy's hands tightened into fists as he found a new resolve. Not only did he need to protect the hat for Shanks, but he needed to protect Faye too. Just like she had taught him, he thought, he needed to protect the treasure that he had. 

The clown-pirate now held the straw hat in it's hands. The hand that had slashed it had brought it over to him. 

"How is this old, tattered hat a treasure?" Asked the clown-pirate. "Treasure refers to sparkly gold, silver, and jewels that display their owner's grandeur! You call this filthy straw hat a treasure? Cut the crap!" 

"That's the hat Shanks and I swore over!" Shouted Luffy back. 'And the hat that holds someone precious to me,' thought Luffy. He knew that he couldn't say that out loud, though. He had promised Faye that he would keep her existence a secret. He would only tell someone if she gave him her permission. 

Luffy watched as the clown-pirate threw the hat on the floor. Luffy gritted his teeth in anger. He watched as the pirate stomped on the hat. And he hoped that Faye would be okay after that. 

Luffy listened as the pirate explained that he and Shanks had been on the same ship—not that it excused the fact that this pirate had gone and damaged that which he valued greatly. Luffy ran toward the pirate, ready to attack him. 

"Shanks is a great man!" Shouted Luffy. "You, his comrade?! Don't compare yourself to him." Luffy sent a punch and a kick toward him—successfully hitting him in the gut. "Never say you and Shanks are comrades ever again!" 

"I can say whatever I want about Shanks!" Shouted the clown-pirate. 

"What happened between you and Shanks?" Luffy asked him while pulling the pirate's cheeks outward. 'What happened,' he thought, 'that made him want to do this to my hat.' 

"Damn it!" Shouted Luffy. "How dare you tear up my treasure!" 

The pirate went on to explain what had happened between him and Shanks, which Luffy found wasn't a good enough reason to go and do what he did to his precious hat—in fact, he thought, not many things would be a good enough reason. 

Once he defeated the pirate, he picked up his hat, his eyes lingering on the three gashes across it's top. 

"It's all torn now," said Luffy. 

"It's all right," the ginger that he had helped told him—she had said that her name was Nami. "I'll fix it later," she assured. And she kept her word. Once they had sailed out—himself, the swordsman Zoro and Nami—she had taken the hat and sewed up the gashes. 

'It wasn't perfect,' he had thought. He could still see the marks where the tears had been. 'But at least it's fixed.' He placed his hat back on his head letting his fingers run over the sewn up tears. 

"Are you alright, Faye?" He whispered so that the other two couldn't hear him. But he didn't get a reply.


	3. Chapter 3

It had been days and Luffy was worried. It had been days since his hat had been damaged, since he asked Faye if she was okay, since he had heard her voice. He hadn't heard a single word from her—no whisper, no glimpse of her light pink hair—nothing. It was only natural that he would worry; she had always came when he called her before so for her to not do that now— 

'Is she okay?' Luffy thought to himself. He knew that it had hurt her when the hat had been damaged. He had heard her cry out in pain—he was absolutely sure that that had been her. 'Is she still hurt?' He asked himself. He had made it a habit over the past few days to run his fingers over the stitches on the top of his hat every so often. He didn't notice that he had been doing it, though. 

'Is she even still there?' He wondered, but he quickly pushed those negative thoughts out of his mind. She had to be, he told himself. She had made a promise to him, after all. 'As long as you have this hat,' she had said, 'you'll never be alone.' And he still had the hat, he thought. But yet—he sure felt awfully alone. 

It had been days, but Luffy didn't let his worry linger too much. It was there. It was on his mind. He couldn't ignore it. But he wasn't the type of person to let it consume him. He kept the huge grin on his face as he traveled with his small crew to the next island. He would still have his adventure. And he thought that hopefully, Faye would be watching. 

In those days that had passed, Luffy had met an interesting boy. His long nose was unusual, but his face greatly resembled Yasopp's—he was the son that Luffy had heard so much about. The boy, Usopp, had kept him occupied and so had the fight that he had with that pirate with the long claws—Luffy couldn't remember his name; remembering names about people that didn't matter was something that he never cared much to do. 

And then they had gotten a ship. A wonderful ship—finally. With masts and a sail and a sheep figurehead. The Going Merry was her name and he already loved her dearly. Once Usopp had officially joined the crew, and they had painted a jolly roger, a simple skull but with his treasured straw hat, he had found himself the perfect seat on the ship—on top of the figurehead. It was right at the head of the ship where he could see everything ahead of them perfectly. 

And then that night, while the rest of his crew slept, while he sat on the sheep's head, his face neutral as his eyes set on the ocean, he heard her. 

"Sorry about that," she said. He turned around from where he had heard her voice to see her seated on top of one of the sheep's horns. Her hair was still the soft pink that he was used to, her dress still perfectly white, and the gentle smile that usually graced her features were still there—she was okay. 

"I just couldn't seem to find the right moment to pop up," she said. "What with your crew around and you being on such a small boat. But now that you have this wonderful, new ship, that shouldn't be a problem anymore." Her eyes widened as she saw tears start to fall down his face. 

"Luffy—no. Why are you crying?" She asked, moving closer to the boy. She moved her hand forward, ready to comfort him with a touch, but then pulled it back when she remembered that she wouldn't be able to do so. 

"I thought you were gone," he said in between sobs. 

"Aw, jeez," she said. "Ace was right. You really are a crybaby." She let out a giggle, letting her smile grow a bit larger. Luffy calmed down his sobs and wiped the tears from his cheeks. 

"You shouldn't be crying if I'm here now, right?" She asked. 

"But you got hurt," Luffy said—Faye noticed that it was a statement and not a question; she couldn't deny the fact that she had been and she wouldn't. 

"I felt pain, but nothing else happened to me. I'm alright, Luffy. I'm strong. Now," she said, turning her head upward to look at the stars. "Don't worry about things like that anymore, okay? I made you a promise and I don't intend to break it." The two sat in silence for a moment enjoying the sound of the rocking waves and the gleaming light of the stars as they shone on the deck. 

"This really is a fine ship," she said, breaking the silence. 

"Yeah!" Agreed Luffy with an excited grin. "And I got the best seat on it!" Faye laughed softly at his enthusiasm. 

"And now you finally have your own pirate mark! It looks just like you," she said playfully. 

"Of course," he said, puffing out his chest. "I am the captain after all!" 

"That you are." She hummed thoughtfully. "I wish I could tell Usopp stories about his father. I'm sure he would enjoy them." 

"You can," said Luffy, an insistent look in his eyes. 

"No, Luffy. You know I can't." 

"You can trust them! They're my nakama." 

"I'm sure I can, Luffy, but..." She hesitated for a moment as she pondered her words. "It isn't time yet." Luffy pouted at Faye, but then slumped in defeat knowing that this was not a decision that she would budge on. 

"Shouldn't you be in bed, Luffy?" She asked him, changing the subject. "I'm too excited to go to sleep!" He moved around on the figurehead until he was laying flat on his back, staring straight at the stars. He groaned as he tossed around. "Can you tell me a story?" He asked. 

"Alright," she said, thinking back to see what would be a good story to tell. "Ah," she said as she settled on one memory. "Do you know what a platypus is?" She asked him. 

"A plate-a-what?" He questioned. 

"A platypus." 

"Is it related to an octopus?" 

"No. It looks like a beaver, but it's got a beak like a duck and it's venomous!" 

"Sounds neat!" Exclaimed Luffy. Faye chuckled. 

"Well, one day, Shanks and the others docked on this really pretty island. It seemed like harmless fun. They found this nice river to rest by and that's when Shanks spotted this giant nest. It was humongous! Maybe as big as this ship! There were several eggs in it, but they were giant eggs and Shanks couldn't help but think about what wonderfully, giant omelets they could make with those eggs. Little did he know, though, that those eggs belonged to a very protective pair of platypi; both of which were even bigger than the nest." She stopped, seeing that Luffy had fallen asleep right there on the figurehead. He was snoring peacefully, his arms sprawled out on the sheep's head. 

She sighs, wishing that she could bring him inside, get him a blanket—anything. He was sure to get cold if he stayed out here like this. But she couldn't. Sometimes she really hated what had happened to her. She couldn't give Luffy a reassuring touch, or feel the wind in her hair or smell the ocean breeze. When was the last time she felt the warmth of another human being, she thought. It had been years—decades; so much time had passed between then and now. She wanted to get her body back so badly. 

Faye sighed softly as she looked over at the sleeping boy. 

'But I can wait,' she thought to herself. 'I've waited so long already. I've seen two generations of pirates pass. I can wait a bit longer. After all, I want to see you become Pirate King first, Luffy. I need to stay like this at least for a bit longer so that I can be sure that I'll be by your side every step of the way.'


	4. Chapter 4

"It's great that you finally have a cook," Faye said. She sat on one of the horns of the Going Merry's figurehead while Luffy sat on it's head. That had become the usual for them. Luffy had claimed his seat so she had claimed her own right by his side. 

"Hopefully he can keep up with your appetite, though," she added. Luffy laughed softly knowing that Faye was right. 

"Faye," he said after a moment, though it sounded more like a question to her. 

"Yes, Luffy?" She asked. 

"When we get you back in your body, I want to taste your cooking!" Faye's smile grew. 

She remembered when she had first told Luffy the story; when she had explained that she wasn't a ghost haunting the hat, but a soul who had been removed from her original body and attached to his straw hat. When she had explained that she just knew her body was still out there,—she could feel it in her gut—that it was somewhere, waiting for her, he had resolved that he would find it for her. He would free her from practically being trapped so that she could live again. He had promised her that he would and she was touched by his determination, but she hadn't expected anything to come of it. Neither Roger nor Shanks had been able to progress much in the search of her body, as if it were hidden away beyond human comprehension. Or maybe that gut feeling that she had was wrong; maybe her body had been destroyed long ago and she had nothing to go back to. Then she would be destined to continue as she was until the hat was fully destroyed, taking her soul along with it. 

Roger and Shanks had not been able to find her body but they had been able to find information—mostly, information on the devil fruit that had placed her in the situation that she was currently in. Because of that she knew that even though it had been decades since she had inhabited her own body, there was still a chance that her body was fine—exactly as she left it, in a coma-like state, not having aged a single day. 

She had never expected anything to come of Luffy's promise to her to find her body, but as she learned more about him, as she watched him grow, she knew without a doubt in her mind that if anyone could help her then it would be him. There was just something about him—when she realized that she had made him promise something to her in return. He wasn't allowed to look for her body, she had told him, until he became king of the pirates. That came first, she had said. That was what took priority. 

He had agreed to the promise, though rather reluctantly. He had wanted to become pirate king with her by his side—with her as a pirate just like him on his crew. But if that's not what she wanted, he thought, then he would respect her wishes. She'd still be there with him, he knew, even if she couldn't physically be there, she'd still be part of his crew. 

"My cooking won't be as good as Sanji's," she warned him. Luffy immediately pouted at her response and whined as he pulled the sides of his hat down either side of his head. 

"I don't care," he said. "I want to taste it because it's yours." Faye's gaze softened as she looked at the boy. He always had a way of making her feel special even if he didn't have that intention, which she knew, Luffy being Luffy, he didn't. 

"Alright. I'll cook for you, but don't have your expectations too high. You know my talent isn't in cooking." Luffy grinned at her comment. 

"I know," he said as he removed the straw hat from his head and looked intently down at it as he held it in his hands. 

"It'll be nice to be able to make a hat again when I have my body again. It's been so long." Faye had a far off look as she spoke. Nostalgia clouded her eyes as she thought back to her life before all this—before her becoming a pirate, even. When she lived a simple life with her family making hats of all sorts for her family's little hat shop. 

"I want to watch you make another hat like this one!" Exclaimed Luffy. 

"That might get boring for you," she said. "You'd have to sit still for quite a long time. There is a lot of weaving involved after all and then the sewing after..." She trailed off. 

"I don't care!" He said. "I can do it. I just wanna see how it's made. I wanna see you make it." 

'There he goes making me feel special again,' thought Faye. 

"Alright," she told him. "I guess you will need a hat after you give back that one to Shanks. It'd be strange seeing you walking around without one." Luffy bounced up and down on his seat with a grin on his face. He was happy that she had agreed to let him watch; he really was curious to see how it was made—to see how she made it, how she worked. He could only imagine that it was probably something really amazing to watch. 

"I can even make one for Ace too if he wants," she said. "Once I have my body again I'll finally be able to meet him properly. That'll be exciting." Luffy had finally stopped his bouncing. 

"Yes! It'll be so much fun!" 

"I wonder if he'll remember me..." She muttered to herself softly, but Luffy had heard it. 

"Of course he will!" He said. "How could anyone ever forget you?" 

'This kid...' Faye thought. Always there. Always making her feel special, feel better, feel happy. Once she got her body back, she thought, she would give him a long overdue hug. The biggest, tightest, warmest hug that she has ever given anyone. 

She really hoped that once she got her body back, that things wouldn't change between them. She liked this. She liked how close they were. She liked how special this relationship between them felt. And she didn't want to lose that. She'd rather lose her body, she thought, than lose that. And that was new to her—feeling that way. It was different, for sure. She didn't feel that strongly about maintaining her relationship with Shanks whom she had spent a few more years with than with Luffy; and she hadn't felt that way about Roger either, though his death did sadden her greatly, whom she had spent more than twice as much time with than she had with Luffy and yet—there was just something about him, she thought. But she wasn't sure what that something was.


	5. Chapter 5

Faye had always been proud of Luffy. She was proud of him when he had caught his first prey. She was proud of him when he had figured out how to better aim so that he could finally hit his targets. She was proud of him when he had sailed out of Foosha, when he had gotten his first crewmember, defeated Arlong, gotten a ship and created his jolly roger. 

Each day that passed, he never ceased to amaze her and each day that passed, her pride for him grew. And now he finally had a bounty. Now he was really a pirate she thought—a pirate wanted by the government and to be feared by others. He was on his way to greatness, she knew. 

"30 million beri," she marveled as she sat by her usual seat by the captain's own. 

"It's not that much," pouted Luffy. 

"Did you expect a bigger one when you have only just started your journey?" She asked. Luffy, who had been laying on his stomach atop the sheep's head turned around to lay on his back so that he could look at Faye. 

"But your bounty is more than mine," he whined. 

"One, it's not that much higher," she said as she looked at him pointedly. "You'll far surpass it soon enough. And, two, my bounty isn't even relevant anymore. The whole world pretty much assumes I'm dead." Luffy grinned at the thought that crossed his mind. 

"Everyone's gonna be so surprised when you come back!" He exclaimed, pumping his arms up into the air. Faye laughed at the thought. 

"I think they'll be more surprised that I won't look like an old lady," she said. 

"But you'll still be an old lady!" 

"I'm not that old," whined Faye with a pout, which caused Luffy to laugh. 

The two sat in silence for a while. Faye looked up at the stars as Luffy looked at her. He wondered if she would look exactly the same when she got her body back as she did now. Maybe her hair would be longer, he thought. Or maybe she would be taller. He often wondered about how much the image he was so used to seeing may differ from her body. Was her hair the same shade of pink? Her skin just as pale? Curiosity aside though, he couldn't wait until she was, for lack of a better word, normal again. He couldn't wait to touch her—to give her a warm, tight embrace. He had known her for so many years now—9 years—but he couldn't even brush his fingers against her own. It did make him quite upset sometimes. He knew that it made her upset too. Not just being unable to do that, but being unable to touch anything, to pick it up, to feel the things around her. All of that made him more eager to become king of the pirates already. Because once he had, he could fulfill his promise. Once he had, he could finally help her. He could finally make her happy. 

"We're almost at the Grand Line," said Faye. "Things are about to get a lot more interesting." Luffy grinned at her. 

"We're gonna have even more fun adventures!" He said. 

"We'll be headed to Loguetown next, right? That's what Nami-san said." Luffy nodded. 

"Have you been there?" 

"Of course! It's where Roger was executed after all. I was with Shanks then. And we both agreed that we needed to be there. We needed to pay him reverence at his death—during those last few minutes of his laugh." There was a sadness to Faye's voice as she spoke. 

Luffy couldn't help the awe-filled stare that he directed at the pink-haired girl. She knew so much, had experienced so much. Yet, the decades that she had lived, she had done so while being unable to experience those things like others had. She had done so while most did not even know of her existence. Yet she was able to keep smiling. She smiled probably as much as he grinned, he thought. And he really liked that about her. 

"I never got to give him a proper goodbye," she told him. "My last words to him were me reprimanding him for being so careless because of Rouge. Because he had gone and gotten her pregnant without thinking about the consequences. That idiot. To think that I would end up meeting his child, though. Maybe it was fate." 

Luffy had forgotten about that—that the man that had been king of the pirates was Ace's father. It wasn't something that he thought about often, after all. When he thought about Ace, he thought about how strong his big brother was. He thought about how caring he was. And about how much he loved him. It never mattered to Luffy who Ace's father was so he never really thought about it. 

"What do you plan to do as soon as we get to Loguetown?" She asked him. 

"That's an easy question!" Exclaimed Luffy as he sat up. "I'm gonna visit the place where the king of the pirates was executed! Where he told the world about One Piece!" 

"And do what? You're not one to pay your respects for the dead." 

"I'm gonna tell the world," said Luffy as he stood up on the Going Merry's figurehead, "that I'm gonna be king of the pirates!" His voice had grown louder, resulting in the end of his proclamation being a shout. Faye couldn't help but chuckle. 

'Of course he's going to do that,' she thought. Her eyes widened as she sensed a nearing presence. She immediately reacted and disappeared right before Luffy's eyes. 

"Faye?" He asked. He was used to Faye disappearing, but there was always a reason that she would and right then he didn't know what that reason was. And then he heard the sound of a door slamming open. 

"It's the middle of the night!" He heard a voice that he recognized as Nami's shout. "Go to sleep!" He heard the door shut right after and Nami's footsteps as she walked away. 

"Let's try not to be too loud," he heard Faye say as she reappeared right before his eyes. Luffy pouted at the statement, but nodded his head in agreement, regardless. "If you go and shout that on top of the execution platform," she began, "then you're going to attract a lot of marines." 

"I'll be ready to fight them all!" He exclaimed, making sure to keep the volume of his voice at a moderate level. Faye giggled. She motioned toward the ships' deck to Luffy, disappearing before him again. Luffy stretched his arms up to the edge of the deck and pulled himself up onto it. He saw Faye standing there, her hands by her mouth as she pretended to hold a den den mushi. 

"Sir," she said, deepening her voice as much as she could. "I have a visual on Monkey D. Luffy! The pirate that's worth 30,000,000 beri. I'll move to catch him right away." She moved her hands toward her waist, as if putting away the communication device in a non-existent pocket. "Stop right there, straw hat!" She said as she pointed a finger at him. "Surrender now!" Luffy grinned at Faye's antics. 

"Never!" He said. 

"Then I have no other choice then to take you by force!" 

"You can't catch me! I'm gonna be king of the pirates!" Luffy pulled his arm back, aiming an attack at Faye. "Gum-Gum," he said, "Pistol!" His arm shot out toward Faye and went right through her stomach, no flesh ever meeting his own, before his arm snapped back toward him. As soon as he had done so, Faye placed a hand over her stomach and dropped to her knees. 

"He got me," she said, in a strained voice. She fell down to the floor, laying on her side. "He's too strong." She disappeared again and then reappeared behind Luffy. 

"That had to be a lucky hit!" She said, her voice still deepened. "Prepare to die, pirate!" Luffy turned around to face her. 

"Gum-Gum," he said, readying another attack, "Bazooka!" He shot out both of his arms, which went right through her again. 

"Noooo," she said dramatically after his arms had snapped back. She spun around before disappearing again and then reappearing right next to him. They turned their heads to look at each other as huge grins broke out on both of their faces and laughter consumed the pair. 

Luffy thought about how fun it was to have Faye around and Faye thought about how there was never a dull moment with Luffy around. The two basked in the joy that they shared with each other, both of them hoping that it would never end.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have realized that the song "My Dearest" by supercell fits Luffy and Faye's relationship perfectly. Literally, word for word. Every single line in that song is perfect for them. Go listen to it and look at what the lyrics mean~


	6. Chapter 6

When had it happened, Faye wondered. Had there been a defining moment? Had it happened from one moment to the next? In the blink of an eye—so fast that she missed it? Or was it so gradual that it couldn't be helped that she didn’t see it until now. Had it happened a little everyday—but for how long then? When had the little crybaby boy become a man? When had that goofy, endearing childish grin of his become one that could put those around him at ease and give them hope? She was with him at practically all hours of the day—how had she missed it? How had she not seen it until now? 

She thought back to the whale. With scars spread out all across his head, he was a sight to behold. But he was a heartbreaking sight with a heartbreaking story. She could sense the resolve coming from Luffy when he had found out. She could sense his desire to help the poor whale. For someone who claimed not to be a hero, he sure ended up acting like one a lot. 

When Luffy had started fighting the whale, it surprised everyone. It was so sudden, they thought. But then Luffy had called the fight a draw. 

"Your buddies are dead," he had told the whale, "but I'm your rival forever. We definitely have to fight again in order to decide who is stronger. After going around the Grand Line, we’ll come back to see you again. When I come back, let's fight again!” 

Luffy had painted his jolly roger on the whale's head. Albeit badly, but it spanned over the scars. 

"This is the symbol of our promise to fight again," he had told the whale. "Until we come back, don't remove that mark by hitting your head. Got that?!” 

Faye couldn't help but beam at the boy as pride swelled up in her chest. There had been a method to his madness. He had started the fight with the whale with the intention to get him to stop hurting himself. He had had the outcome planned from the very beginning. 

Her brilliant, kind-hearted Luffy—he had always been a ray of hope; the sunshine peeking through the clouds on a rainy day. But this was different. This was so different—more mature than just making those around him smile and laugh. 

When had he become a man, she thought. God, how it frustrated her that she couldn't answer that question. Would she ever be able to, she wondered. Probably not. 

She watched said boy—no, said man's chest rise and fall. He had fallen asleep on the deck again. He really needed to stop doing that, she thought. He was going to catch a cold one of these days. She sat by his side silently. His mouth was open, drool dribbled down the side of his mouth, and his snores filled the night air. Just like when he was a kid, she thought. The wind blew and though every strand of hair on Faye's head remained still, Luffy's hair was blown, leading some of the longer strands to fall over his eyes. She lifted her arm and reached out toward his head. She moved her hand, ready to brush the hair aside. But she couldn't. Her fingers felt nothing, his hair remained unmoved, and Faye quickly pulled her hand back as if it had been burned. She closed her eyes tightly and let out a sigh before turning to look away from Luffy. There was a slight ache in her chest and she knew that if she were to look at him now it would only grow stronger. 

She started listing all the things that she missed about having a body. How many times had she done this? She had honestly lost count decades ago. Shanks had told her that she shouldn't do that. It wasn't healthy he would say. It would only make her feel worse about her situation. And Faye knew that he was right, but he just couldn't help it. He had told her to count the good things that came about her situation. Of course, when she tried to think of that, her list didn't get past three things—not growing to look old, not being able to feel pain and not being able to get dirty, which according to Shanks was the best positive thing about it because that meant that she didn't have to worry about bathing. This, of course, earned him several insults from Faye about him being disgusting and her telling him to go bathe that instant. 

She frowned as she forced herself to look back at Luffy. As she looked at him, she couldn't help the smile that grew. 

'Meeting Luffy is a positive to this situation,' she thought. She briefly wondered if she would have eventually met Luffy regardless. Would fate have brought them together? But she didn't let that thought linger. It didn't matter, after all. 

'He's definitely a positive in this situation,' she thought. 'The biggest one. He makes this bearable. And he'll make it all have been worth the wait in the future.' 

"Luffy," she called softly to the boy. "Wake up. You need to go inside before you get sick." 

"Five more minutes," she heard Luffy grumble. 

"Nope. I'm not falling for that."


	7. Chapter 7

"I just don't think that it's a good idea," said Faye. She and Luffy were seated on their usual spots at the figurehead of the ship. 

"But it sounds like it's gonna be so much fun!" Exclaimed Luffy with a grin, pumping his arms up into the air. 

"But this whole organization that's going to be after you guys now," Faye lowered her voice. "I don't know that this princess is worth it." 

"Vivi is a nice person," responded Luffy. "We're gonna help her." Faye sighed, turning her head away from him. She knew how Luffy was—he wouldn't budge once he had made a decision. He was stubborn like that. He was a lot like her in that. But she couldn't help but worry for him. This whole thing—protecting this princess, bringing her back to her country, and getting involved in this civil war or whatever it was that was going on there—did not settle well with her. It did not seem like something that Luffy should get himself involved with. What business does a pirate have with a kingdom on the verge of collapsing? 

"If you help her," said Faye, turning to face Luffy again, "then you'll be helping decide what happens to Alabasta. You'll have the fate of an entire kingdom practically in your hands." Luffy shrugged at the statement. He didn't care about that. He didn't care about what title Vivi held or what was going on wherever they were going. All he cared about was that they were going to be heading somewhere that would be full of adventure—somewhere where he could fight, eat and have fun. 

Faye bit her lip at Luffy's resolve. Normally, she would admire his adamant determination, but right at the moment, god, how she hated it. When it all came down to it, she thought, all she really cared about was Luffy and where he stood in this whole mess. She didn't want him to get himself involved in something that he wouldn't be able to handle. She didn't want to see him getting hurt. Fighting against Arlong was one thing, but this— 

"But there's even a warlord involved here!" Faye told him. "A warlord! Chosen by the navy!" 

"So? I'll just beat him up," stated Luffy with a laugh, punching his left hand with his right. 

"It's not that simple, Luffy," Faye protested. "Do you really think that you'll be able to defeat a warlord?" 

Luffy's grin fell as his hands dropped back onto the Going Merry's figurehead. In that moment, he felt like he couldn't breathe. He felt like a weight had been pressed down against his chest and he had to fight against it to get air into his lungs. Was Faye implying what he thought she was? He hoped not. With every single fiber of his being, he hoped not. 

"Of course," Luffy answered, turning to look at Faye. "Don't you?" 

Faye didn't answer right away. She turned her head away from him again, not wanting to look at him. She could only imagine the pleading look on his face. His eyes were probably wide, confused and seeking. She realized that she had probably said the wrong thing. Or maybe she had said the right thing in the wrong way. Either way, it wasn't something that she could get out of now. And she wasn't going to lie. She wouldn't lie. 

"I'm sorry, Luffy," she said, still not turning back to face the pirate captain. "But I have to be realistic here and I don't think you're strong enough to face a warlord yet." 

Luffy's fingers curled and gripped onto the wood of the Merry's figurehead as tightly as was possible. He turned his head to face forward and let his hat tilt and cover his eyes. That weight that he had felt on his chest before felt like it had increased tenfold. How could she say that, he thought. How could Faye, his Faye, who had always had faith in him, always believed in him, always stood by his side and comforted him and supported him, even when his own brother, Ace, hadn't—how could she say that? How could she not believe in him? Why didn't she? Why now of all times? Or maybe she had always felt this way, he thought. Maybe she had always thought him weak and never felt the need to tell him the truth until now. How could Faye, his Faye—it hurt. It hurt him so much to hear those words because they came from her. Had a stranger said it he wouldn't have cared. Had one of his nakama said it, then he would've just told them to not worry because he was strong. But they didn't know him like Faye had. They never would; they never could. 

She had said the wrong thing, Faye concluded. She had definitely said the wrong thing. And she hated herself for it. Never had she done something to upset Luffy before. But yet she sat there now and she knew that he was upset. She'd have to be a fool not to notice it. She felt like her heart was being squeezed as she saw how tightly he was gripping onto the head of the Merry. And in that moment, while she worried about how much she must have hurt him, she couldn't help but also worry that he might get splinters. 

'Stupid,' she told herself. 'That's such a stupid thing to worry about right now.' 

"Luffy," she said, reaching out for the rubber man. 

"What do you know about being strong?" He asked. "You haven't been in a fight in so long." 

Faye pulled her arm back slowly, with tears in her eyes. He was right, she thought. She hadn't. How could she have when she couldn't even touch anything? It had been decades. Five decades, if she had been keeping count properly. Fifty years since she had been able to feel her fist hitting against someone else's skin. Fifty. God, how it hurt to be reminded of just how long she had been stuck like that. She knew that Luffy hadn't meant to hurt her. He couldn't have. This was Luffy after all. He would never hurt someone like that with words—not intentionally, at least. He must have said it because she hurt him. It was his retaliation. Pain for pain. It was only fair, right? He didn't mean it, she kept telling herself. He couldn't have. 

"Luffy," she said again, but this time more softly. This time, she didn't try to reach out for him. 

Luffy felt guilty the moment that those words had left his mouth, which was new. Guilt was not a feeling that was well-known to Luffy. He often said things without thinking, without hesitation, but he wasn't one to regret it. He never really wished that he could take back his words until now. Now he wished he could because he knew that those words would have hurt Faye. He knew that it must have hurt her in one of the worst ways possible. He didn't like this feeling at all, he decided. It gnawed at his gut, worse than a bad stomach ache. But what could he possibly do to get rid of it? 

Luffy couldn't think straight. He was a simple-minded guy whose train of thought was always straight-forward. He didn't like complicated. Whenever he was met with a complicated situation he always found a way to make it simple. If met with a maze, he would rather punch through all the ways than sit there and try to figure out how to navigate his way out. But he couldn't do that now. He couldn't punch his way through this. He couldn't see a way to simplify it. And he hated that. 

Everything inside him right now was getting really complicated and it made it hard for him to understand what was going on. Normally, when Luffy was angry, he felt angry and when he was sad, he felt sad, but right now it was much more than just that. He felt that pain in his chest, that heavy weight pushing down, making it hard for him to breath, that many others would identify as being hurt. He felt that gnawing, tugging feeling in his gut that many would identify as guilt. He felt a heaviness crawling up his spine, tensing up his muscles as it went, which many would identify as anger. And it was all too much. His feelings were getting all mixed up and jumbled and, god, how that frustrated him. He didn't like this. He wanted it all to go away. He wanted everything to go away. He wanted to be left alone with nothing but the sound of the swaying waves as his company. 

"Just go away," he said. And that made Faye's heart stop for a moment. Luffy had never asked her to leave. He had never minded her constant company. He had never cared for having time for himself, just himself. But this also didn't sound like the Luffy that she was used to. His voice wasn't cheery. It didn't make her want to smile. It was low and gravelly and it made her want to cry. She felt more tears well up in her eyes, a few falling down her cheeks, off of her face and then disappearing before reaching the horn of the Merry that she sat on. Silence engulfed the pair for a few moments. 

"If that's what you really want," said Faye. Her voice was low and soft and it came out in gasps, letting Luffy know that she was trying her best to hold back tears. When he turned around to look at her, there was nothing there. She was gone. Luffy felt like something had stuck itself in his throat. He gulped, but the feeling refused to go away. He turned back to look at the calm ocean waves as he removed the hat from his head. He sighed and held onto it tightly as he lay face down on the figurehead of the Merry. He felt so exhausted from everything so he let the sounds of the ocean lull him to sleep, the grip on his beloved straw hat never loosening. 

*** 

If Faye knew anything about Luffy it was that he didn't hold grudges. Luffy wasn't one to hold in anger. She wasn't sure that it was even possible for him to be upset over something for more than 15 minutes. So when he didn't call for her that night of their disagreement, or the following day, or even the day after that, she couldn't help the pain and the fear that consumed her heart. What if he never called for her, she thought. Had she really messed up this badly? Had she really upset him that much? 

The nights that had passed for Luffy were lonely nights; they were nights devoid of Faye's soft voice and gentle laughter. And yes, it still hurt him to remember that Faye didn't believe that he was strong enough to do this—to take down a warlord, but he had resolved that he would just prove her wrong. He would prove to her that he was stronger than she thought. That he was strong enough to handle himself. And then she would never doubt him again. Because he didn't like that she had. He wanted to have her complete and utter faith because that's how it had always been and he liked that. 

But after everything that had happened, after words had been exchanged, after what he had said to her, he wasn't sure what to tell her. He wasn't sure if she was still upset. He knew that some people wouldn't be able to move on from something like this so easily. He had met people like that in his life. But, though he had known her for several years, he wasn't sure if Faye was one of those people. He had only ever seen her upset over her situation or when reminiscing, but never from something like this. Would an apology be enough, he wondered. He wasn't sure. He was only sure of the fact that he didn't want Faye to be upset anymore and that he didn't want to feel alone any longer. Still, it took him days to decide and form the resolve to apologize to her. This wasn't like a battle where he could just run in wildly and expect to come out victorious, he knew that much. 

On the night that they finally reconciled, it was not bright. There were clouds in the sky that obscured the stars and moon, casting a shadow over the ship. Luffy was sitting on the deck of the Merry rather than his usual seat with his hat laying flat on the floor in front of him. 

"Faye," he said with his face cast downwards, his hair slightly covering his eyes. Faye felt a wave of relief hit her as she finally heard Luffy call for her. She appeared seated right in front of him, the hat in between the two. A gentle smile lay on her face. 

"Luffy," she said softly, reaching an arm out and letting it hover just below his chin. Luffy understood what she meant with the gesture and lifted her head to look at her. He was surprised to see the smile on her face. He opened his mouth to say something, but before he could say anything, she shook her head at him. 

"I know you probably plan to apologize," she said. "But there's no need. I don't care about what you said. I'm just glad that everything is alright now. There's no need to dwell too much on those things that have already happened." Luffy's neutral face disappeared as he started to smile, he was glad that she wasn't upset with him. That's what he had feared the most out of this situation. 

"If anything," she continued, "I should apologize for what I said. It's not that I don't believe in your strength, Luffy, but," she paused in hesitation. "I can't help but to worry." 

"You don't have to worry!" He exclaimed as his signature grin spread across his face. "'Cause I'm gonna be king of the pirates!" 

Faye giggled and let out a sigh of relief. If it meant being able to remain by Luffy's side, she resolved, then she would never doubt the man again.


	8. Chapter 8

It was freezing that night. Just like it had been every night that they were in that desert. Of course, Faye didn't feel any of it. But she couldn't help but worrying over Luffy's shivering form. He was sitting next to a fire, but the cold wind still managed to crawl itself under his clothes. He was the only one awake at that time of night, as usual, but because of not wanting to stray far from the fire, he had to make sure to be extra quiet so as not to wake anyone else up. 

"I was thinking," said Luffy, "of asking Nami to sew it onto the hat so I don't lose it." Luffy's eyes were set on a sheet of paper that he held on to tightly with his hands—a sheet of paper that Ace had given him. Faye recognized it as a vivre card, but she decided that if Ace didn't feel the need to explain it to Luffy yet then she wouldn't either. Faye took a deep breath as she stood next to the rubber man. She wiggled her toes beneath her, trying to remember what it felt like to have sand slipping in between them. 

"I think that's a good idea," Faye told him. Luffy moved his attention away from the paper, turning his head to face the pink-haired woman. 

"But wouldn't it hurt?" He watched her close her eyes, her smile growing slightly. 

"I was fine when Nami-san sewed me up before so I'll be fine now. Besides, it'd be an honor for me to be the one to hold onto that." Luffy sent her a grin before tucking the paper in his hat with the promise of getting it sewn tomorrow. He laid down on the sandy ground and yawned. 

Faye let her thoughts wander over to Ace. It had been so long since she had last seen him. It was nice to know that he really was alright. He had really grown up, thought Faye. Just like Luffy, he had become a man somewhere over the past few years. 

'Did I miss that too?' She wondered. 'Or did that happen after he left?' 

Ace had definitely grown taller, she noted. And more muscular. He had also gotten a tattoo. But he still had those same adorable freckles adorning his face. 

‘Just like I figured, though,’ she thought, ‘he's grown to be a very attractive man.’ 

“Ah,” she said aloud as a blush covered her face. “What am I doing?” She let her eyes wander over to Luffy, wondering if he had heard her. But she noticed that he had already fallen asleep. She let her eyes settle on his peaceful face. She couldn't help but smile. He was just so damn—adorable. But not in the way a child or a puppy was. It was more complex than that. She closed her eyes as she thought about it. He was— 

"Gah!" She said, speaking to herself out loud again. "I'm gonna stop myself right there." Another blush passed through her cheeks. 

'It'd be weird to see him that way, wouldn't it?' She wondered in her head. 'I've known him since he was a child. And it's true that he isn't a child anymore, but...' She huffed as she started to get frustrated with her train of thought. 

'I'm just not gonna think about this anymore,' she told herself. She let her mind wander to other things. But somehow, her thoughts would always end up going in circles until they finally reached Luffy again. The fact that he had asked her for permission before getting the vivre card sewn into the hat made her heart swell. She turned her body toward him and moved closer so that she sat right next to his laying form. She reached out to him and allowed her hand to hover right over the scar under his left eye. 

"You take such good care of me, Luffy," she said softly as the man in question continued to snore. She couldn't help but wonder how the scar under his eye would feel underneath her fingertips. Was it rough, she wondered, as deep scars usually were. If it was, it would contrast greatly against the texture of his skin. At least, it would if his skin was as soft as she imagined it was. 

It only took a second for her to miscalculate the distance between his face and her hand. And when she did, she found herself reaching too forward and her fingers disappeared, still unable to answer her own musings. She sighed as she pulled her hand back toward her, eyes still focused on Luffy's face. 

"I wish I could take as much care of you as you do of me," she said. "But without my body..." She trailed off as she saw Luffy start to toss and turn around in his sleep. His peaceful face was gone. His brow was now furrowed. 

'What could he be dreaming about?' Faye wondered, but she knew that whatever it was must be unpleasant. She started to hum a soft tune close to his ear. One that her mother used to hum to her, so long ago when she was a child. One that she had hummed to Luffy on several occasions when he had been younger. She watched the rubber man's thrashing lessen as the humming continued. She wished that she could run her hands through her hair. It was a soothing gesture, she knew, and it would probably help to calm him down as well. But she shouldn't dwell on that, she thought. She should focus on what she was able to do for him right now. 

And so she continued her humming until a peaceful look settled on his face once more.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Huge timeskip here. Skipping over the rest of Alabasta and Skypeia and Water 7/Enies Lobby. This is right after they set sail with the Sunny.

It was such a bittersweet feeling. 

On one hand, they had lost a wonderful ship. A ship that had taken them to so many places—even the sky. On the other hand, they had gotten a wonderful new ship. One that was made by their own nakama. One that would take them to so many more new places—to the New World. 

"It's a ship fit for a king," Faye told Luffy the night that they had first set sail on their new ship. The two were sat side by side on the figurehead of the Thousand Sunny, Luffy having claimed that as the Captain's seat. Luffy was leaning back slightly, his hands resting against the figurehead and positioned slightly behind him to hold up his weight, while Faye sat with her knees drawn up, her arms wrapped around them and her chin resting on them. 

"Huh?" Asked Luffy, turning his head to look at Faye and tilting it to one side. Faye kept her gaze out on the horizon with a gentle smile on her face. 

"Lions are known as the king of beasts," she explained. "So this ship is one that's worthy of carrying a king." 

Luffy grinned at Faye's statement. He enjoyed when she would say things like that—when she would speak as if he was already the pirate king. It showed that she had complete faith in him reaching his goal. It gave a boost to his confidence and made his heart swell up. 

Faye turned her head so that she could face Luffy. She let the side of her head rest against her knees. Her eyes brightened as she looked at the man before her. Over the weeks that had passed, she had realized how much more she enjoyed accompanying Luffy on his adventures than she had enjoyed accompanying Shanks and Roger on theirs. It’s not that her adventures with Shanks and Roger weren't fun. No—she had enjoyed their antics and found them both to be good company. But with Luffy—it was different. She didn't really know how to explain it, but she found herself enjoying even the littlest of moments with him—things that she knew didn't matter to others, like when he would fish (which she knew would only get more interesting now that they had an aquarium) or when he would try to get food from the kitchen behind Sanji's back (which she knew would only get more difficult now that they fridge could be locked). They were things that mattered to her and they mattered solely because it involved Luffy. 

Faye couldn't fully grasp her feelings. She had always cared about the pirate captain, but lately it was different. It was overwhelming, but not in a bad way. It was overwhelming in a way that made her heart flutter and kept a smile on her face. For as long as she had existed, she had never felt like this before. She wondered if the feeling would continue. She wondered if it would grow. She wasn't sure if she would be able to deal with it if it did. She wondered if it would change in some way and she kind of hoped that it didn't. 

"I told you that your bounty would far surpass mine, didn't I?" Asked Faye as she thought back to the crew's new wanted posters. "And not only that, but yours went up by 200,000,000 beri. That's a huge leap, but I guess that's what you get when you challenge the world government." 

"I'll challenge anyone who tries to hurt my nakama," said Luffy with a look of determination on his face. 

"I know you will, Luffy. That's one of the things that makes you a great captain." 

Luffy sent another grin toward the pink-haired woman. He didn't like the fact that she was in the situation that she was in—her being incorporeal—because it made her sad. But, at the same time, he liked it because it had enabled the two of them to meet. And he was glad that they had. He liked spending time with her. And he liked how she made him feel—comforted and assured and not alone. She was his solace and he liked that too. But most importantly, he liked her for being her. He liked how compassionate and carefree and sincere she was. And so he hoped that she would never leave his side, even after she got her body back. 

By the time the moon had risen to its peak, the two had moved their positions on the Sunny's figurehead. Luffy lay on his back, the mane of the figurehead to his left and Faye to his right. Faye sat facing Luffy with her back to both the ocean and the direction in which the ship headed. Luffy was asleep. Faye was not. Her situation did not allow her to be able to fall asleep. Fifty years and she had not slept for even one minute of it. She hated it not because she loved to sleep, but because time went by so slowly because she couldn't. When everyone else was asleep, she couldn't do much more than simply watch. 

Faye watched Luffy as his chest rose up and down over and over again. She watched as he shifted his body every so often. She watched as the wind periodically blew his hair. And she sighed as the thought that had kept reentering her mind ran through it again. She had pushed the thought away for as long as she could. But with not being able to do anything much more than think, she was forced to accept it and mull it over in her head for some time. She had, recently, decided that she had given it too much thought and had come to recognize that she did in fact find Luffy attractive. But the fact that she did still didn't sit well with her. She knew that there wasn't really a valid reason for her to feel guilty about the thought, but she couldn't help but feel that way. 

"Oh, Luffy," Faye said to herself quietly. She leaned over her face hovering over his and brushed her lips against his forehead—a pseudo-kiss since her lips weren't able to make contact with his skin. She sat back up and tilted her head back to face the sky. She sighed again as she closed her eyes, shutting out the light of the moon and stars. "What have you done to me?"


	10. Chapter 10

Faye was terrified—the kind of terrified that made your body tremble and your lungs struggle to breathe. She was panicking, which was something that was new to her. She was normally calm, collected and laid-back in most situations. Maybe angry sometimes. But she never panicked. She had no reason to. She often believed that things would work out in the end. But this time she wasn't so sure. This time she couldn't be that optimistic. Because this time his life was on the line in a way that it had never been before.

Faye could only secretly watch as the large purple haired man whom she had learned was named Ivankov and the orange and white haired man who was named Inazuma carried Luffy and Bon, respectively, into their hideout. They walked into a room that was empty save for a wooden table and laid both of the injured men on it. Ivankov removed Luffy's shirt, sandals and straw hat as he took in the extent of the poison that littered the rubber man's body. He frowned, knowing that the chances of him making it out of this alive was incredibly slim. He sighed as he handed the removed items to Inazuma before telling him to treat Bon. He picked up the squirming Luffy again with ease and turned around to walk out of the room.

"Wait!" Shouted a feminine voice. Ivankov turned around confused, knowing that there hadn't been any female in the room with them, but just as he thought that his eyes laid on a pink-haired woman standing right next to Inazuma. He noticed a pained look on her face, her teary eyes showing distress.

"Please," she said, her voice cracking slightly. "Please don't leave me behind. Don't separate us. Not now." Ivankov raised a questioning eyebrow.

"Who are you and where did you come from?" He asked her.

"It's complicated," she said, her voice trembling.

"Make it uncomplicated. Quickly." Faye scowled. There was no time for this, she thought.

"My soul is attached to that hat," she explained, pointing at the straw hat in Inazuma's arms. "I can explain it more later. Right now all that matters is Luffy." She pulled her eyes away from Ivankov's gaze and let it settle on Luffy's form—covered in the purple splotches of Magellan's poison as he struggled against the pain he felt, eyes shut tightly and teeth gritted.

She couldn't hold it back anymore. It hurt to see him like this. It hurt to see him in so much pain and to know that he might actually die. But what hurt most was knowing that there was nothing that she could do about it—there was no way that she could help. She felt so damn useless. And then the tears finally slid down her cheeks.

"Please," she said so softly that Ivankov almost didn't hear it. She dropped herself onto the floor, kneeling, head bowed so low that her forehead was touching the floor. "Please," she continued. "I'm begging you. Don't leave me behind. I can't." She paused. "If he dies, I can't—I need to be there. Please." Ivankov sighed. He'd always had a soft spot for people who begged with good intentions.

"Hat," he said with his gaze on Inazuma. The man immediately understood and placed the hat on Luffy's bare torso. Ivankov watched the woman vanish into thin air and heard a whispered thank you right by his ear. He would definitely question her later, he resolved.

He turned back around and headed toward the room where he intended to treat Luffy—a dark room that would have been empty were it not for a metal table at the center of the room and some chains that lay beside it. Once there, Ivankov lay Luffy on the table, placing the straw hat on the floor next to it, and tied him down with the chains. He took a step back after and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Ten years of your life," started Ivankov. "I'll have to use ten years of your future for this treatment, Straw boy." Faye felt her heart drop. Ten years, she thought. Ten years was a damn long time. Ten years—it kept reverberating in her head. Ten years less that Luffy could enjoy life. Ten years less that she could spend with him.

"Alright," agreed Luffy between strained breaths.

"But there's no guarantee that it's gonna save your life. Now you have no chance of survival and all I can do is give you a 2 to 3% chance for survival. And then it's up to your spirit, if it's possible or impossible for you to survive. If the poison takes over, you will die. But if spirit wins out, you will survive. Alright now, have a nice trip to," Ivankov's nails grew incredibly sharp, "the valley of the shadow of death. Emporio Healing Hormone!" He shouted before stabbing the nails into Luffy's sides making Luffy let out a scream.

Faye appeared again, seated next to the elevated metal slab on her legs with her hands on her thighs. Her eyes were intently set on Luffy. Ivankov watched the pair for a few moments and hummed thoughtfully before turning around and exiting the room.

And then Faye sat it silence. Or rather—she was silent while she listened to Luffy's heavy breathing and screams. It killed her, all of it, but still she never removed her eyes from his figure. Some minutes passed before she spoke—or maybe it was an hour. It could have possibly been even more than that. She wasn't paying attention to the passage of time.

"Luffy," she said. "You'll get through this. I know you will. You have to. Ivan-san said that it's up to your spirit if you survive and you have a strong spirit. I know that. You'll get through this. You will." She paused for a moment. "It's been an eventful week, huh? So much has happened. And Ace..." She trailed off. "You need to get better quick, Luffy. We still have to save Ace, remember? We don't have that much time left. And it's not like I can go on my own and help him. Luffy, please." Another pause.

"Remember that time that you ran into a patch of poison ivy and Ace refused to get close to for a week because he thought it was contagious? No matter how many times Dadan and Makino told him that it wasn't, he refused to believe that. And you tried so hard to follow him around, but he kept running away from you." She laughed at the memory, trying her hardest to ignore the pained screams that filled the room. "Or that time with the spiders? Ace told you that he had something yummy for you, but that you needed to close your eyes and open your mouth. It ended up being spiders. I think you terrified Ace when you ate it without flinching. Your stomach really is incredible, Luffy." A smile had settled on her face as she continued to recount memories with the two boys. She continued to ramble, only pausing briefly to gather her breath, afraid that if she stopped then she would break down, which was very likely true.

Luffy was in an incredible amount of pain. No other pain that he had felt before could rival it. It felt like his insides were on fire. Like his muscles were being endlessly torn to shreds. Like his head was being hit repeatedly with a hammer, full force. He wanted it to end. He felt so hot, but at the same time he felt so cold. He didn't know if he wanted to pant or shiver. And it was dark. It was so damn dark.

The agony didn't let him keep proper track of time. Had it been minutes? Hours? Days? No. It couldn't have been. He needed to go save Ace. He needed to get through this. He had to save his brother. But dammit if it didn't feel like an eternity had already passed. He hoped that wasn't the case.

There was nothing but the excruciating pain for a while. It was silent. He couldn't hear anything. Not even his own screams. Time passed, he assumed, and then he heard something. It was so quiet he could barely hear it. Like the squeaking of a mouse—no, it was like mumbling. Like someone was whispering from far away. He tried to focus in on it, but it was so hard to do that when he felt the way he did. But still he kept trying. He kept pushing himself. He kept reaching out for the voice, trying his hardest to ignore the intense aching coursing through his bones. And it gradually started to get louder.

The voice got closer, the whispering louder. It started to sound like they were speaking at a moderate volume. Then he recognized the voice. It was Faye's. He couldn't make out what she was saying at first. Then he could only make out a few words. He heard his name. And he kept hearing Ace's too.

"That's right," he thought. "Ace. I have to save Ace."

He still couldn't catch a lot of words, though. He couldn't hear any full sentences. He still couldn't tell how much time was passing, but Faye hadn't stopped talking. He wondered how long she had been there, talking to him. Was it only a few hours? Or had it been days? He hoped not. He knew that she wouldn't have felt the same strain as others, not needing to eat or sleep. But it still must have been exhausting. It must have been affecting her in someway. How could it not?

More time passed. He started to hear more words. It was hard to hear underneath his terribly loud screams, but he strained his hearing as much as he could. Then he started to catch some full sentences. Not all. His focus still kept fading in and out. But it was something and it helped him try to keep track of time at least. He heard her say something about Bon.

"You hear that, Luffy?" She asked him. "You got someone else cheering you on now. Bon-chan is out there." That confused him. And then he faded back out. But when he came back to her voice, he heard another behind it.

"Hang in there!" It shouted, over and over again. He realized that that was what Faye had been talking about. Faye was cheering him on in her own way from his side while Bon was cheering him on in his own way from elsewhere. He needed to get through this, he knew. And not just for Ace.

His focus continued to fluctuate back and forth. Faye's voice brought him comfort, but he could only focus on it so much. It was so damn hard to through the pain and the sound of his own screaming being finally able to reach his own ears.

And then he heard sobbing and he knew that he had to focus because that had to be Faye.

"Luffy," he heard her say, voice cracking. "Please don't leave me alone. Please." She said something else that he couldn't hear—that he couldn't focus on. And then, "I need you. If you were to die—." He lost focus again. "You've made me the happiest I've ever been." Then mumbling. Or at least it sounded like mumbling to him.

He started to feel a heaviness settle over his chest. Like a weight had been pressed over it. It got harder to breathe. The pain spiked upward and his screams got louder. He didn't think that either was possible. There was darkness and silence again then the sound of mumbling once more. He was aware that he had probably lost consciousness several times. The pain was so unbearable that it wouldn't have been surprising.

And then it lightened. Not nearly fast enough, he thought. But it lightened. Little by little it became more bearable. His screams grew quieter and Faye's voice grew louder. Eventually, he was finally able to hear her without losing focus. Breathing got easier. His body still ached all over, but he no longer felt like he was being torn apart. His head was still pounding, but he no longer felt like his organs were floating in lava. And then he stopped screaming.

He finally opened his eyes only to be met with more darkness. Though, it wasn't as dark. He looked down at the chains wrapped around his body and then over at Faye who had teary eyes and a huge grin on her face. He looked back down at the chains and, ignoring the soreness that still enveloped his body, used his strength to break them. He fell down to the floor on his knees, panting hard. After gathering his breath as best as he could, he grabbed his beloved straw hat and placed it onto his head. Faye sighed in relief and promptly disappeared.

She had never been more terrified in her life, but she had also never been more thankful.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Skipping forward to right after the end of the War of the Best. Rewatching this part so that I could write this made me cry all over again. Btw, this is pretty much gonna be the last in-canon chapter.
> 
> There's a throwback here to chapter 2. Let's see if you guys can catch it.

"Too many damn people," thought Faye. There were too many damn people in the room.

She had, reluctantly, revealed herself to Ivankov and Inazuma not very long ago. She had resolved that, in that moment, Luffy was way more important than keeping the fact that her soul, the very essence of her, and her life was tied to a hat.

But that was just two people. Right now, she was in a room with a little over half a dozen people. Too many, she thought. Were it just a single person there—specifically the doctor, Trafalgar Law, then she would show herself in a heartbeat because she wanted to be right by Luffy's side at that moment—she needed to be. She had only just gotten over almost losing him once. And here she was going through that all over again.

She figured that if Luffy could fight off death once then he should be able to do it a second time. But then again, it was an experience that had taken a lot out of him so would he really be able to do it again? She had faith in him, as usual, but still she couldn't shake the doubt in her mind—no; doubt wasn't the right word. She couldn't shake off the fear. That ever-growing, crushing fear.

"It wasn't so bad," she told herself. She had to look on the bright side, right? She was still in the room with him, at least. Not close enough. But still. She could watch from where she was. She could watch, wait, think.

She couldn't help but think about the afterward. What would happen after Luffy woke up only to remember that Ace had died? And in his own arms, no less. The outcome of the events that had just transpired tugged at her heart, but she knew that the pain that Luffy would feel upon waking up would be ten times worse. Knowing that Ace had at least died on his own terms and for a good cause, to protect his brother, helped to ease her heart. But she knew that Luffy wouldn't think that way.

She also thought about how life was unfair. She had accepted that long ago and the fact itself had never bothered her before. But now—now it bothered her a lot. Because Luffy had lost Sabo before and now he had lost Ace and that was just so damn unfair. Luffy shouldn't have had to go through that. He didn't deserve the pain that came with losing both of his brothers.

Faye agonized at how excruciatingly long the wait had been. If she thought waiting those hours during which Luffy was fighting off the poison was long, then this was beyond an eternity—two weeks. It was two whole damn weeks before Luffy finally woke up. And when he finally did, it wasn't all happy sunshine and roses. When he finally woke up, all hell broke lose, just like she had expected.

Hearing his screams, him screaming for Ace, destroyed her. It was just as bad as hearing his cries in Marineford. No; maybe worse. When Luffy ran off into the forest, she grew frustrated that she couldn't follow after him. That frustration grew and mixed in with worry—no, that word was too tame; it was anxiety, squeezing her heart, pressing down on her lungs, which grew when she had heard Law say that if Luffy reopened his wounds, he would die.

She felt some of the anxiety lift from her, not all that much, when Jinbei walked into the forest after him. She was glad that Law had given the Fishman the straw hat, which he had tucked away in his clothing, so that he could return it to Luffy when he would awaken.

As Jinbei made his way toward Luffy, she observed the path of destruction that he had left behind. Trees split right in half, boulders shattered to pieces, parts of the earth having been ripped right out of the ground. She couldn't nearly begin to imagine the kind of pain that was coursing through his body—not the physical pain; she knew that that would be nothing compared to the emotional suffering that he was going through.

When Jinbei finally caught up to Luffy, said man was hunched over on the ground, breathing heavy, eyes filled with so much emotion, not one of which was positive.

"The war has ended," Jinbei told him. "Ace-san is..."

"Don't say it!" Shouted Luffy, cutting him off. "Don't say another word! I've already pinched my cheeks so hard it started to bleed. If this was a dream, I'd have woken up by now! It's not a dream, is it? Ace died," he said, tears streaming down his face. "Didn't he?!"

Faye felt her heart shatter, an endless stream of tears that mirrored Luffy's. She wished that there was someway that she could take away his pain. She'd do anything to be able to do that, and she honestly meant anything; whether it be taking the burden of the pain on herself or extinguishing her own existence. Because Luffy mattered so damn much to her. He mattered more than anything, more than anyone, ever had in all of her existence. It killed her how much she cared for him and she both hated and loved it because it caused her both so much pain and so much joy. Is that what they mean when they say that "love is a hurricane"?

"Yes, he's dead," confirmed Jinbei. The screams from Luffy that followed the confirmation, were heartbreakingly loud. Faye was sure that they were loud enough to be heard throughout all of Amazon Lily.

"The king of the pirates?!" Questioned Luffy, still crying. "I'm...I'm...I'm too weak!" Luffy started to break things around him again. "I'm too weak! I can't save anybody!" He cursed aloud repeatedly while punching the ground.

"Luffy-kun," said Jinbei.

"Go away!" Luffy told him. "Leave me alone!"

"I can't! I can't just watch you hurt yourself anymore."

"It's my own body! It's none of your business!"

"Then you can't blame Ace for doing what he did. His death was not your business!" Fury began to bubble up inside Faye. How could he say something like that now of all times? Surely he must know how that would make Luffy feel; how that would make him react.

"Shut up, you bastard!" Luffy shouted. "I'm gonna beat you if you say another word!"

"Do it if it makes you happy!" Jinbei told him. Luffy stood up, turning around to face the ex-warlord. "I'm injured too, but I'm not gonna get beaten by you in that condition!"

"Gum-gum," began Luffy as he pulled his arm back, "pistol!"

His arm moved forward, but Jinbei easily dodged the attack. He grabbed onto Luffy's stretched army, using it to flip him around and onto the ground. Luffy coughed up blood upon impact. The pair breathed heavily. Jinbei caught his breath first, his wounds not being as severe as Luffy's, and sat down. Luffy got up and bit down on Jinbei's arm.

"Ouch! Ow, ow, ow!" Exclaimed Jinbei as he tried to shake him off. He stood up again, pulling the arm that Luffy was biting on back. "That hurts, you brat!"

He threw his arm forward, throwing Luffy forward into a boulder. The Fishman moved forward quickly and wrapped his hand around Luffy's throat keeping him against the boulder and lifting him off of the ground. Luffy squirmed under the grip, his hands wrapping around Jinbei's large wrist as he tried to remove the hand. At this point Faye's tears had stopped and instead her blood was practically boiling. If she had the ability to get Jinbei away from Luffy, she would have by now.

"Can't you see things clearly now?!" Shouted Jinbei. "You believed that you could overcome anything! And you've never doubted your strength! But all those formidable enemies took away your confidence! And your brother was your guide on the sea! I know that you have lost a lot! And the toughest enemies in the world blocked your way time after time! You'll never find your way like this! Because you've lost yourself in regret and guilt!"

Faye calmed herself a bit as she came to a realization. Jinbei knew exactly what Luffy needed much more than she did. He didn't need to be coddled. That would only make things worse. He needed to have some sense knocked into him. He needed to learn how to get past this. A memory resurfaced in Faye's mind from more than a decade ago. It applied as much now as it did then. And Luffy needed to remember it.

"I know that it's painful now, Luffy, but you have to bottle up those feelings," finished Jinbei, letting go of Luffy who slid down the boulder and onto the floor. He breathed heavily staring at Jinbei for a moment before his vision moved to something past him.

Jinbei turned around having felt a presence suddenly appear behind him just as Luffy's gaze shifted away from him. His brow furrowed as he saw a girl with light pink hair, a white dress, and no shoes. He wondered where she had come from. Was she a woman from the island? He should have sensed her presence as she neared them, but he hadn't. It was more like there was nothing and then suddenly something; as if she had appeared out of nowhere.

"Faye," Luffy said softly. His eyes didn't stray away from her as she moved closer to him. She sent a soft smile his way.

"Luffy," she said, his name rolling off of her tongue gently. Her voice sounded like a lullaby to him in that moment and it soothed him a bit. "Do you remember what I told you long ago?" She asked him, turning her gaze up to the sky. There was silence for a moment as the wind blew, but neither her hair not her dress moved a centimeter. It unnerved the Fishman who stood to the side.

"There's nothing you can do about the treasure you lose," she said. Luffy looked down at his hands that lay face up on his lap. With his brow furrowed, he brought the memory to the forefront of his mind. His eyes widened as he relieved the memory briefly. It still felt fresh in his mind even though it had happened almost a decade ago.

"So focus on protecting the treasure you still have," he finished softly. Faye brought her gaze back down to Luffy and watched his next actions intently.

He brought his hands up, images of his nakama running through his head. He brought down his left thumb as he thought about Zoro; his left index finger as he thought about Nami; his left middle finger as he thought about Usopp. Tears started to gather in his eyes. His left ring finger for Sanji; his left pinky for Chopper; his right thumb for Robin. He continued his mental countdown. His right ring finger for Franky; his right middle finger for Brook. And then lastly, his right index finger, for the woman standing before him, the one who has never left him alone for the past nine years, for Faye. He opened his hands and let the tears fall down from his eyes freely.

"I still have," said Luffy, "I still have my friends! Zoro! Nami! Usopp! Sanji! Chopper! Robin! Franky! Brook! Faye! They are my friends!"

"I see," said Jinbei with a smile on his face.

"I have to meet them on the ship. I gotta go. It took a while, but...I know that they're waiting for me!" Jinbei sat in front of Luffy whose head was buried in his knees. Faye hummed to herself softly, walking further away from the pair, ready to make her disappearance away from the eyes of a curious Fishman while he was distracted.

"I wanna see them!" She heard Luffy sob.

She looked back again to make sure that the ex-warlord wasn't looking and when she reassured herself that he wasn't, she faded into the air in less than a second leaving no trace that she had ever been there. Jinbei turned around when he felt the presence of the girl that had been there suddenly disappear. He looked around, but saw her nowhere in sight. He had no idea what was going on and it made him uneasy.

"Luffy," Jinbei asked after he had calmed down.

"Huh?"

"Who was that girl that suddenly appeared and then disappeared?"

"Oh, you mean Faye?" He asked with a grin. "She's my friend!" He didn't add anything more to the statement and Jinbei decided not to pry anymore.

"Oh!" Exclaimed Luffy. "Can I get my hat?" Jinbei pulled the hat out and handed it over to him. Luffy placed it back on his head, pulling down the edges a bit, glad to have it with him again.

"How did you know I had it?" Jinbei asked with a raised brow.

"I just did," he replied.

Faye watched as Luffy was taken back to the edge of Amazon Lily where the others were. She watched as he talked with Rayleigh and came to a decision. She watched as he went back to Marineford to send the message out to his nakama—two years instead of three days. She knew that they would all understand. And then as he went to Rusukaina to begin his training.

"You ought to remember this tree," Rayleigh pointed out after having said their goodbyes and as they headed further into the island. "Even savage beasts stay away from it. It's the only safe area on this island."

"Hmm. It's kind of funny looking!" Said Luffy.

The pair continued further into the island as Rayleigh further explained about it while Luffy looked around at his surroundings in awe. He saw some of the wild beasts and learned about haki. The following day was when he was ready to really start his training. But before he could do that, he decided to make a quick stop.

"If I'm correct, he said that this is the only safe place," Luffy said aloud as he stood in front of the strange tree that Rayleigh had pointed out to him before. "The pirate Straw Hat Luffy will be on hiatus for a while." He removed the hat from his head and placed it onto one of the many rocks that surrounded the tree.

"Luffy," he heard Faye's gentle voice right by his ear. She made sure not to appear before him and was able to make her voice only audible to Luffy, knowing that Rayleigh was watching not too far away, but she had a sneaking suspicion that a man of his skill just knew. "Don't leave me behind." Her words held a pleading sadness behind them.

"This is the only safe place on the island," he reminded her. "If I keep the hat with me, I can't guarantee that it won't get damaged. I can't risk that. I need you to stay safe."

"But you'll be alone," she told him. 'And so will I,' she added to herself in her head.

"That's alright," he told her with a smile. "It'll just be for a bit." Faye wasn't too fond of Luffy's decision. It did not sit well with her at all. But if this is what he thought was best then she would go along with it.

"Oh yeah!" Added Luffy. He pulled out the vivre card with Rayleigh's name on it. "This one too." He placed the piece of paper inside the ribbon that surrounded the hat. He heard Rayleigh call out for him. "Take good care of it," he told her. "See you in two years," he said with a grin that faltered just slightly for a split second—too short for Faye to have caught it. Then he turned around and ran ahead toward the man that would be training him.

Faye sighed to herself in frustration. Two years. Two whole years. Two whole years to sit here alone. What the hell was she supposed to do? She wished she could at least have been able to read a book or something, but once again she was left to do the only thing that she could do—think. A girl can only think so much, she thought.

She mused to herself for a bit before she came up with the best idea that she could think of. Everyone else was going to be getting stronger over the next two years. Not just Luffy; she knew the crew members well enough to know that they would all do the same. She wanted to get stronger too, but she couldn't get physically stronger seeing as she wasn't corporeal. If all she could do was think then that's what she would do. She had 70 years worth of memories stored in her head. And she had two years to go through them and pick apart every single one; there had to be a bunch of things that she had learned and that she knew that she had forgotten about. Well, she decided, it was time to remember them.

The two years passed by. It began agonizingly slow for both Luffy and Faye. Luffy didn't anticipate missing Faye as much as he did and Faye had never felt so alone in her life as he did then. But they coped, they kept themselves busy, and it got easier as the days went by both of them knowing that the time for them to see each other again would be coming soon.  
When that time did come, the two were a lot happier than they had expected to. But that wasn't surprising. Two years was a damn long time to have no contact at all.

Her eyes shone brightly when she saw him. He had grown so much over those two years. Well, not physically. He didn't seem to be much taller or anything like that, but there was just something about him that seemed more mature. She couldn't exactly place what it was though. She was glad to see that his grin hadn't changed, though. Not even a bit. It was one of her favorite things about him. It was proof that her Luffy was still the same Luffy.

Luffy grinned happily as he saw her figure waiting for him, smiling and bouncing up and down. But as he got closer, his grin was replaced with a confused face as he tilted his head to the side. Something about her seemed different, he noticed. But that didn't make any sense. She hadn't changed at all during all the years that he had known her. And as he looked at her he noticed that she had the same pink hair and she was wearing the same white dress and her feet were still bare as they had always been—all still spotless.

He was able to get a closer look when he stopped right in front of her. His brow furrowed, still not really understanding—was her hair always such a light shade of pink? It looked soft. He wondered how soft it would be if he could touch it. It was a strange thought. He had never really been bothered all that much about their lack of physical contact—he knew that it had always bothered her a lot more than it had him. But right then he would have loved to embrace her. It had been two years, after all. Two years was a damn long time.

"Luffy?" She called out, waving her hand in front of his face. It broke him out of his reverie. A grin spread wide across his face again. There was no need to think about it all too much, he figured. He placed a hand on the straw hat and dusted the snow off of it before placing it back on his head and closing his eyes briefly.

"It's so good to be back~," he heard her say. He thought back to that day in Amazon Lily after everything had happened in Marineford. Back to that moment when her voice made him feel a bit more at peace. It sounded just like that now. Like a lullaby. He opened his eyes again and took a step forward.

"It's the start of a new adventure!" He exclaimed. She laughed merrily in response before disappearing into thin air. They were one step closer to him becoming king of the pirates, she thought. And another step closer to getting her life back, popped up the thought in the back of her head, but she pushed that one back for now. That wasn't the priority. Luffy was, she knew. He would always be.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gosh darn you Oda for revealing something that conflicts with this fanfic. If you're caught up with the manga then you should know what I'm talking about.

[2 Years Later—Luffy, Age 21] 

"I have a favor to ask, Shanks," said Luffy. Shanks stared at Luffy, taken aback by the seriousness evident on the pirate king's face. "I know that I promised that I would return the hat, but I have to ask to keep it for a little longer." Shanks raised his eyebrows at the request. 

"Why?" He asked Luffy. 

"You know why," he replied. Shanks smiled at the answer. He leaned back against the railing of his ship and tilted his head backward to look up at the night sky. He could hear the sounds of the two pirate captains' crew members partying in the distance. 

"You been taking good care of him then, Faye?" Shanks asked. He heard an airy giggle which, though it had been a long time since he had last heard it, he instantly recognized. 

"Did I take good care of you?" Faye asked him. Shanks tilted his head back down to see a softly smiling Faye standing next to Luffy whose serious expression had disappeared. 

"Well," began Shanks, "you were awfully mean to me most of the time." Faye rolled her eyes at the man. 

Shanks turned his attention back to Luffy. 

"So you're going to try to find her body?" Shanks asked. 

"Not try—I will." 

"Do you even know where to start?" 

"Nope," answered Luffy. Faye couldn't help but to smile at his straightforwardness. "But I'll figure something out." Shanks laughed. 

"That's just like you—diving headfirst without a plan. But...years of planning by Roger and then by me didn't solve anything so maybe you've got the right idea, Luffy." Luffy laughed at Shanks' words. "Luffy," said Shanks after a moment. "Can I speak to Faye alone?" Shanks asked. Luffy looked over at Faye to see if she was fine with that. She sent him a smile that made him reluctant to separate himself from her and then she gave him a quick nod. 

"Go to the others," she told him. "You've been missing out on all the meat." 

"No!" Luffy wailed dramatically. He quickly, but gently, handed the straw hat to Shanks and then, with one last glance toward Faye, flung himself right into the others causing an uproar. 

Faye laughed as she watched the commotion, her eyes unconsciously following Luffy's form. She only pulled her attention away from the man when she realized that Shanks was staring at her. She looked over at him and saw him raising an eyebrow at her while wearing a smirk. 

"What?" Asked Faye. 

"Aren't you a little too old for him?" 

"W-w-what?" Faye stuttered out as a blush arose onto her cheeks. Shanks grinned cheekily. 

"So you're saying that you weren't just looking at him like he's the only thing that matters?" 

"I—I—." Faye's cheeks grew even brighter. 

"I think I'm a bit jealous, honestly," he told her. "You didn't fall in love with me." Faye huffed as the color of her cheeks began to fade back to their normal color. 

"If anyone's too old," said Faye, "it's you for me." 

"Is someone getting defensive now? And you're like 300." 

"It's more like 70! Jeez." 

"Old lady." 

"At least I don't look like I'm 70, unlike some people I know," Faye said while giving Shanks a pointed look. 

"Ow! That hurts!" He paused. "I don't look that old, do I?" The two stared at each other for a moment before simultaneously bursting out into laughter. 

"Man," said Shanks after calming himself down. "I miss having you around." 

"That's on you. You gave me away," said Faye as she turned her head away from him in fake resentment. 

"You should be thanking me. I'm like a matchmaker now." 

"Stop it!" Faye exclaimed as pink rose back onto her cheeks. 

After a few moments, Faye felt the atmosphere around them change into a more serious one. 

"You really think that you'll be able to get your body back?" Shanks asked the pink-haired woman. 

"Yeah," she replied honestly. 

"Does Luffy know about all of the possibilities?" Faye didn't answer as she stared out straight ahead of her. Shanks took her silence as a 'no'. 

"Faye," he said in a chastising tone. Faye sighed and looked over at him. 

"He knows that we either find my body or we don't. Though he won't accept the second as a possibility." 

"You know it's more complicated than that, Faye," said Shanks. Faye looked away from the red-haired pirate. 

"He wouldn't take the knowledge of the other possibility well," argued Faye. "You should know that." 

"But if the devil fruit user has died..." Shanks trailed off. "How do you think Luffy would feel to actually find your body, only to learn that there's no possible way to put you back into it?" Faye pressed her lips together into a thin line. 

"That," Faye responded, "that won't happen." 

"You can't know that." 

"I just...feel it. There's something telling me that he's alive and that the time is close." 

Several minutes passed by before either of them uttered another word. 

"Do you believe in fate?" She asked him. 

"Not really," he told her and then paused. "Are you trying to say that you think that this will all work out because of fate?" Faye hummed an affirmative. "Faye..." 

"I know that you probably think that it's ridiculous of me to rely on fate," Faye began. Her gaze was set on the island—specifically, on Luffy. "But...doesn't it feel like fate has been playing a hand in all of this, this entire time? I mean, of all of the people in the world that I could have ended up coming across while I was stuck like this, it was Roger. And then of all of the crews you could have joined, you ended up on his. And then you ended up in Foosha of all places and encountered Luffy who was able to catch your attention enough for you to pass down the hat. From a king to an emperor to another king." Faye paused. "And maybe it is all coincidence, but the possibility of it being otherwise is still there. And...if I've learned anything over my long kinda-life it's that for those who possess the "Will of D"...things always work out for them. Fate is always on their side. So, yea." Faye looked over at Shanks to see him staring at her intently. "I guess I am saying that this will all work out because of fate." 

Shanks let out a deep sigh before looking up at the sky. 

"For your sake, Faye, I hope you're right." 

***  
[A Few Days Later] 

The Straw Hat Crew had set sail, going their separate ways from the Red-Haired Pirates. 

Luffy was sat atop the Thousand Sunny's figurehead, his signature straw hat on his head, when Nami shouted a question toward him, asking him if he had any specific destination for them to go to next in mind. 

"I guess it's time then," Luffy heard Faye's voice say softly right by his ear. 

"Yosh!" Shouted Luffy excitedly. He held onto the hat that sat on his head as he stretched himself over onto the deck. 

"Okay, guys!" Luffy shouted, grabbing everyone's attention. "It's time for you to meet someone!" 

The rest of the Straw Hat crew looked at their captain quizzically. They were in the middle of the ocean and they had not brought anyone new onto their ship beforehand. Luffy sat himself cross legged on the floor telling everyone to do the same. 

"So I'm gonna introduce you guys to someone very special," said Luffy. Faye couldn't help the warm feeling that surrounded her at those words. "She's always been with me for a long time now." The crew shared confused glances but decided to let their captain finish speaking before voicing their opinions. 

Luffy removed his straw hat form his head and placed it on the floor right in front of him. 

"This is Faye, guys," Luffy said with a grin. The crew stared at Luffy like he had gone crazy. 

"You um...named your hat?" Asked Usopp. 

"He just introduced us to a hat..." Said Zoro. Chopper jumped up from his seat and rushed over to Luffy. 

"Are you feeling okay?" The reindeer asked as he placed a hoof on Luffy's forehead. "Do you have a fever?" 

"Chopper," Luffy whined, pushing the little doctor off. Nami stood up with an annoyed look on her face, while Robin looked amused at her captain's antics. Brook laughed in the background while Sanji told Luffy not to waste his precious Nami-san's and Robin-chan's time. To the side, Franky posed while saying that it was kinda super that he named his hat. 

"Faye," Luffy whined, drawing out the last syllable. A giggle resounded throughout the ship causing everyone except Luffy to freeze. They looked at each other to see if any of them had done that and then looked around to see if there was another person on the ship, but they saw no one. Faye then decided to appear right behind Usopp, knowing that he was the most skittish out of the bunch. 

"Hi there," she said right next to his ear. Just like she had expected, the sharpshooter jumped high into the air. He screamed and when he turned around and saw the pink-haired woman that had not previously been there, he backed away several feet. Faye giggled at his actions and Luffy couldn't help but to laugh along with her. 

"W-w-where did you come from?" Stuttered Usopp as Sanji twirled his way over to her. But when the cook moved to grab her hand, he found his own going right through her. 

"G-g-g-ghost!" Screamed Usopp, Chopper, and Brook at the same time, backing away to the complete opposite side of the ship. 

"Don't be silly, guys," said Nami, though her voice was a little shaky. "There's no way. That must have just been our imagination." Faye smiled at the ginger. 

"Maybe," she told her before disappearing into thin air. Nami screamed and ran over toward where the previous three had gone. Robin and Franky both looked at the woman with interest while Zoro readied his swords and Sanji alternated between joy over having another beautiful woman on the ship and heartbreak over being unable to touch her. 

Faye reappered right next to Luffy who was lying on the floor recovering from laughter. She looked down at him with a grin that almost matched his before looking back at the others. 

"I think that's enough messing with you guys," Faye said. "My name Is Faye. I'm not actually a ghost." 

"Then what are you?" Robin asked her. 

"I guess you could say that I'm a wayward soul." Luffy sat up, finally having calmed down. Zoro relaxed as he saw that his captain wasn't worried by the presence of the strange girl and slowly everyone moved back where they had been though four certain crew members sat a bit further than where they had been before. 

"To put it simply," said Faye, "I am a soul, removed from my body and trapped within this hat." 

"How is something like that possible?" Asked Nami, skeptical of the entire situation. 

"Devil fruit. Isn't that always the answer?" She asked rhetorically as she looked over at Brook. He nodded her way, starting to feel more relaxed by the statement. 

"What we're gonna do," said Luffy, "is help Faye get her body back!" 

"And how do we do that?" Asked Brook. Faye sat down cross legged next to Luffy before answering. 

"Before I answer that, let me start from the beginning. Let me explain how all of this came to be." 

***  
[Approximately 57 Years Ago; Faye, Age 18] 

"No! I don't need your damn permission! I'm an adult!" 

"Don't you dare speak to your mother like that, Faye! You are going to stay here on this island where it's safe. And you're going to take over the business in a few years just like I did and your grandmother did and—." 

"Yeah, I know how it's been, but no. I'm not going to stay on this boring island and spend the rest of my life making goddamn hats! Elizabeth can take over, if that's the issue." 

"That's not the issue. You're going to die out there! There's all types of monsters and bad people out there." 

"No, I won't. I know what I'm doing, mom." 

"Faye..." Began her mother. 

"I don't wanna hear it anymore. Whether you want me to or not, I'm leaving. I'm going out to sea and there's nothing that you can do to stop me." With that, Faye turned around, her back to her mother and stalked away, not letting her mother finish her thought. 

***

[Approximately 55 Years Ago; Faye, Age 20] 

"Damn," muttered Faye to herself as she shook out her money purse. Nothing but dirt fell out of it. "How am I supposed to eat?" She asked herself. "I guess I can dine and dash again, but with my wanted poster circulating around, I might be recognized." Faye sighed. She was on the outskirts of some minor town with a growling stomach and, as of yet, no person in sight. 

She removed her backpack and opened it. I guess I can sell some of the hats I've been making again. She rummaged through her bag and took stock of how many and what types of hats she had. 

"I can't believe that this skill has actually come in handy. I'll have to thank you sometime, mom." Faye pulled out a straw hat and stared at it. It was simple with just a red band wrapped around it. "Maybe I should start making fancier hats—they'd probably sell for more." 

"Morgan!" She heard a man shout from behind her. She didn't pay it any mind, even as it got closer, until she felt a hand grab onto her arm. She quickly spun around as well as she could, letting the straw hat that had been in her hand drop to the floor. 

"What the heck?" She asked with furrowed brows as she came face to face with an older man. He looked to be somewhere in his mid-30s. His eyes looked at her with amazement and relief which contrasted against the dark circles underneath them. 

"Morgan!" He shouted gleefully. Faye tried to pull away from his grasp, but she was much too weak to accomplish the task. 

"This is why I don't let myself get caught," she thought. "How could I be so careless? I've never even been touched by the marines, yet now—maybe this guy doesn't mean any harm." 

"Look," she addressed the man. "I don't know who you think I am, but I'm not them. My name is Faye and I don't know you so can you please let go." She struggled against his grasp. Confusion overcame his features. 

"What are you talking about, Morgan?" He questioned. "More importantly, how are you alive? All those years ago...Oh, it doesn't matter anymore. You can come back home with me now. We can live happily together again. I'm so glad that I found you." 

"I'm not Morgan!" Faye shouted at the man. She was starting to get annoyed and frustrated. 

"You've grown to become such a beautiful young woman. You look so much like your mother." 

"This is your final warning. Let me go," Faye threatened. 

"I've had enough of this young lady," he said in a stern voice. "You may have been away from me for 12 years, but that does not mean that I will allow you to speak to your own father with such disrespect! Now, come along before I lose my temper." 

Faye scoffed. She may not have been physically strong, but she had other skills to make up for it; she jumped, leaning backward, kicking her legs out, slightly twisting her body—in a way that allowed her to, even though he still had her caught in his grasp, hit him right where the sun doesn't shine. He let her go as he reflexively moved his hands to cradle the pained area. 

"I warned you," Faye said, shaking her head. She quickly picked up her backpack, slung it over one shoulder, and grabbed the straw hat in her right hand. She turned, but before she could leave— 

"No!" She heard the man shout. "I will not lose you again!" She spared the man a glance only to see his right arm outstretched toward her as a light blue, ghostly light appeared around it. Faye figured that she should definitely leave because it was getting stranger by the second. But then she found herself frozen in place. 

"What?" She asked, but the question remained caught in her throat, which felt like it was closing in on itself. She felt the air in her lungs diminishing. "Is this a devil fruit ability?" She wondered. 

She put all of her energy into her muscles, but she couldn't even make a finger twitch. Her eyelids drooped and then darkness and then she was watching her body falling backward onto the hard, dirt road. She stared at the scene in confusion. How could she be staring down at her own body like that? 

Then she realized that she felt so much lighter than before—she felt weightless. She looked down at her hands and feet and—wait a minute, she thought. She wasn't wearing a white dress before. She looked over at the body that she had watched fall and saw that that one wore the outfit she had been wearing while this one wore a plain white dress. What is going on, she wondered. 

She looked over to see the man gently picking up her body—the one she wasn't in. 

"I'm sorry, Morgan," he said while staring at her. "But I can't let you leave again. I just got you back. I'll fix this later." Faye's brow furrowed. 

"Fix what later?" She asked, her voice finally coming out. "What is going on?" The man didn't reply. "Answer me right now!" She shouted as she stepped forward. "And stop touching—," Faye looked to the body. She wasn't sure if that was actually her. "Stop touching that!" 

She moved to grab onto the other her, or whatever it was, but rather than grasping onto it, she found herself going right through it. Was that her or was that the other body, she pondered. There was silence for a moment as the two stared at each other. 

A wind blew, which she knew only because she saw the things around her move. She did not feel the wind nor did her dress or hair budge. And then she felt something pulling her backward. She looked back and saw no one; she saw nothing attached to her—only the straw hat that she had been holding earlier, being carried away by the wind. 

"No!" She heard the man shout. She found herself unwillingly moving in the direction in which the hat was flying. She didn't know why, but she could not pull back; she could not stop herself. 

Then she was suddenly right in front of the hat—as if she had teleported in the blink of an eye. She turned back toward where she had been earlier and saw the man heading toward her, moving as fast as he could with the other her still in his arms. 

She felt the pull again, and then there was the involuntary movement and the kinda-teleporting, until she could no longer see the man or the other her. And then further until she could no longer see the island that she had been on. She flew and fell, she quickly realized, in sync with the straw hat. And no matter how hard she tried to move away, she could not move past a certain distance away from it. After days of failure and after being assured that she had no idea where she even was anymore, she gave up. She gave up and she just let herself be carried away by the wind and waves—until she landed on a young man who had been sleeping on a rooftop that was being warmed by the sun. 

The young man woke up upon feeling the hat brush against his bare chest. He had shaggy black hair and a ridiculously wide grin that spread across his face as he picked up the hat. 

"What a neat hat," he said aloud. He turned it this way and that, inspecting it before plopping it onto his head and laying back down in the position that he had been before, this time using the hat to shade his eyes from the beaming sun. 

***  
[Present] 

"So we have to find the guy that did this so that he can undo this?" Asked Zoro loudly over Franky's sobbing right next to him. Faye nodded at the swordsman. 

"But what if he doesn't have your body?" Nami inquired. 

"I'm pretty sure that he does," said Faye. "But if he doesn't then I'd still end up with my body. I would just wake up wherever it is. It'd be inconvenient, but it still solves my issue." 

"Alright," said Franky. "We are suuuuupeeer going to get your body back." 

"Definitely," said Nami. 

"Anything for Faye-swan~," chirped Sanji. 

"Shut up, you perverted cook," growled Zoro. "But count me in," he added, switching his attention to Faye. Faye felt tears begin to well up in her eyes. She knew how amazing Luffy's crew was, but still—even though she knew them, they didn't know her. 

"I'll lend a hand as well," said Brook. "Even though my hand is only bones. Yohoho. We are like kindred souls." 

"I can't imagine how horrible it must be to not have a body," said Chopper. "I'll definitely help get yours back!" Robin sent her a smile that said all that needed to be said. And lastly, 

"I-I guess I'll help, but there better not be any ghosts!" Said Usopp. 

And then tears started to stream down Faye's cheeks. Yes, they weren't real, physical tears. They never hit the floor beneath her. But that overwhelming feeling growing inside of her—an overwhelming, but good feeling—was real. Whether she was corporeal or not, that feeling was real. Her vision was slightly blurred but she was able to catch sight of the mix of faces that the crew was giving her—some concerned and some, whom recognized that her tears were happy tears, cheerful. Luffy was one of the latter. 

"Thank you, guys," she told them. "Thank you."


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You got yourselves another Pirates of the Caribbean reference here.

[1 Year Later; Luffy, Age 22] 

Luffy was sat on the Thousand Sunny's figurehead with his hat tilted forward, shading his eyes. 

"I'm sorry," he said quietly. 

"Huh?" Asked Faye who was seated right beside him. "For what?" 

"I haven't been able to find your body. I know I promised but—." 

"Don't you dare start talking like that," she shouted, her gaze set on him, cutting him off. "My Luffy wouldn't doubt himself so easily. Or give up so quickly." Luffy's hat shifted back as he turned to look at Faye. He tilted his head to the side. Her Luffy, he questioned in his head. What was that supposed to mean? Had she even noticed that she had said that? 

"Plus," she continued, turning her sight to the swaying ocean before them, "don't you think that Robin's theory might be right?" 

"I do," he said, "but—." But guilt was starting to eat away at his conscience. He didn't say that aloud, though. 

"I mean, it makes sense, doesn't it? It would explain why neither Roger nor Shanks were able to find it. I know it's supposedly only a myth, but..." She turned head to look over at Luffy again. "Do you think it's real?" She asked him. Luffy frowned at the pleading look in her eyes. 

"Of course," he said. "The sky island was supposed to be only a myth too, but we went there." He broke out into a grin, which caused a smile to appear on Faye's face. It made him feel better, lighter. Faye hummed lightly as she turned back to look out at the horizon. 

"An island that cannot be found except by those who already know where it is," she said, repeating Robin's words. "So it's all up to fate, huh?" 

But Luffy didn't reply; not because it was a rhetorical question, but because he was too busy focusing on the way that her pastel pink hair fell around her shoulders and the way that her matching lashes framed her eyes and that little curve at the corner of her mouth as she smiled and—Luffy's grin slightly evened out. This wasn't the first time that this had happened. No, it was far from it. It had been happening for some time now and with increasing frequency, but still, Luffy couldn't quite wrap his mind around why—why he couldn't help but stare at her and why he wanted so badly, more than before and more by the day, to get her body back. He knew that he wanted it because of her, because she wanted it so badly, but he knew that he also wanted it become of himself. He knew that there was some underlying selfish reason beneath it, but he couldn't put his finger on what it was. 

Suffice it to say, Luffy was really confused. 

"That's alright," Faye said quietly. "I trust fate." She turned to Luffy and her smile grew a little. "After all," she said, "it brought me to you." 

Luffy ignored the sudden warmth that he felt on his face at the sound of her words and mirrored her smile. 

 

***  
[4 Days Later] 

Faye was seated on the railing of the Thousand Sunny and she hummed lightly as she swung her legs back and forth over the side of the ship. Luffy sat next to her, a fishing rod in his hands, while Usopp and Chopper sat on his other side. 

"There aren't any fish here," Luffy whined as he grew impatient. 

"Sure there are!" Said Usopp. "Leave it to me! I'll catch a great big sea king a—." Usopp stopped as he noticed a thick fog suddenly start to roll in. 

"Nami didn't say anything about fog," said Faye. A smirk snuck onto her face. "Maybe it's ghosts." 

"G-g-ghosts?!" Shouted Usopp and Chopper simultaneously. 

"N-no. There has to be a logical explanation!" Exclaimed Usopp. "Nami!" 

"What the hell do you want?" Shouted the voice of the navigator from inside the ship. "If you disturbed me for no—." Her voice trailed off when she stepped outside. "What?! Where did this fog come from? It's supposed to be sunny!” 

"No!" Wailed Chopper. "Faye was right!" The crew members that hadn't been on deck started to make their way onto it at the sound of the commotion. "It has to be g-g-ghosts!" Chopper continued. 

"Ghosts! Ahhh. No!" Shouted Brook. 

"This fog makes no sense," said Nami. "There is barely any moisture in the air. It's almost like..." 

"GHOSTS!" Screamed Usopp. In the background, Faye and Luffy laughed to themselves while Robin chuckled along with them. 

"Shut up, you idiots," growled Zoro. "I'm trying to take a nap." 

"How can you be so relaxed?!" Questioned Usopp. Zoro scoffed, choosing to ignore the question. The crew watched the fog become thicker as they sailed further. Their visibility was dropping significantly. 

"Ah! I can't see!" Said Brook. "Oh, but I don't have any eyes. Yohoho!" 

"Yahoo!" Cheered Luffy. "Let's play hide and seek, guys!" 

"That's a great idea, Luffy," Faye told the straw hat-wearing captain, with a grin on her face. 

"Take this situation more seriously!" Usopp and Chopper told them. 

"Nami-swan, Robin-chwan," Sanji called out. "Stay by my side so that I can protect you from any hidden dangers!" 

"Don't worry, guys," Franky told them. "I suuuupeeeer got this." And within a second he had turned his nipple lights on. 

"That doesn't help at all!" Usopp yelled at him. 

"Don't do something so lewd in the presence of ladies!" Sanji said, adding a kick against the cyborg's head. 

"Robin," started Faye, "are you thinking what I'm thinking?" 

"It could be," Robin replied quietly, "But—." 

"I shouldn't get my hopes up, should I?" Faye asked. Robin didn't give her a response. 

"Hey, guys," Zoro said loudly, drawing everyone's attention to him. "There's an island up ahead." They all head toward the front of the ship where Zoro was and look out, attempting to see the island. 

"It l-looks like a g-g-ghost island," Usopp stuttered out. 

"Wha?!" Shouted Chopper in fear. "Really?!" Faye started jumping up and down at the sight of the island. 

"Robin! Robin!" She shouted at the raven-haired woman. 

"It does seem quite possible," Robin answered, knowing what Faye wanted to say. 

"What are you guys talking about?" Luffy asked, not liking being clueless in this situation. Faye started jumping in a circle around him. 

"Maybe this is it!" She squealed. "Maybe this is the island!" 

"You mean the island from that legend?" Nami said with a gasp. "I can be the first person to map this island!" She said gleefully before beli signs appeared in her eyes. "And then I can sell those maps at a high price." 

"Yes," added Sanji in a sing-song voice and with hearts in his eyes. "Faye-swan can get her beautiful body back and we’ll finally be able to touch" Nami hit the blond over the head at his statement. 

"You're gonna keep your hands to yourself." 

"Does this mean that it's not a ghost island?" Inquired Chopper. 

"Some versions of the legend say that everyone who sets foot on the island never returns," Robin explained. "Their ghosts left to wander the island for eternity." 

"Oh, no!" Screamed Usopp, Chopper, and Brook. "So it is a ghost island!" 

"Or maybe it's their trapped souls!" Suggested Faye. "Everyone, this could be it!" 

"Then what are we waiting for?" Luffy said with a grin. "Let's go guys!" Faye continued to bounce up and down the whole rest of the ride to the island. No matter how hard she tried, she just could not contain her excitement, nor her anxiousness. 

"Let's go!" Shouted Luffy once they had anchored on the island. 

"I'll come too," said Robin. 

"Count me in!" Added Nami. 

"I'll come to protect you Nami-swan, Robin-chwan," sang Sanji. 

"Come on, Chopper," Nami commanded. 

"What?!" shrieked Chopper. "Y-you want me t-to go on the g-ghost island?" 

"Of course! If Faye's body is on the island, don't you wanna be there in case she needs some medical attention?" Chopper perked up at that. 

"Of course! I didn't think of that!" Chopper scurried over to the four that were readying themselves to head onto the island. 

"Hurry up, guys," whined Luffy. Nami sighed at her captain. 

"The rest of you," she said, "stay on the ship." 

"Leave it to the great warrior Usopp to protect the ship!" Usopp exclaimed, though shaking a little. Zoro rolled his eye. Franky stepped forward and handed Nami some flares. 

"Take these in case you guys have trouble finding your way back," he told her. 

"Thanks," said Nami. "Okay, everyone, we should all hold onto each other so that we don't get separated." 

"Yes!" Cheered Sanji. "I get to hold onto my beloved Nami-swan and Robin-chwan." 

"You can hold onto Luffy," she stated. Sanji hunched over as a depressed aura settled over his form. In the end, as they proceeded farther into the island, Sanji held Luffy's hand who held Robin's who held Nami's. And Chopper sat comfortably atop Sanji's shoulders. 

"The fog is thinning out," Faye pointed out after several minutes had passed. 

"I think,” began Robin, “that it's the trees that are creating the fog. It would explain why it's there despite the weather conditions and why it grew thicker when we got closer to the island. So if it's thinning out then," Robin paused as they saw a town in the distance. "It means that we're nearing an area without trees," she finished. 

Once the fog cleared up enough to give them a clear enough view of their surroundings, they let go of each other. As they entered the town, the silence that hung over them sat heavy. Every single one of them walked with tensed muscles. 

“It's so empty here,” said Luffy after a while. 

“Yea,” Sanji agreed. “It feels like it's deserted. 

“Hello,” Luffy shouted. “Is anyone here?!” But the only reply was the echo of his own voice. Sanji walked over to one of the houses and knocked on its door, but he received no answer. 

“Maybe this place is deserted,” said Chopper quietly. Luffy looked over at Faye and saw that her eyes held both sadness and disappointment. It caused him to frown. 

“No, it can't be!” He argued. “There has to be someone here.” He marched to a different door and knocked, but, like with Sanji, he received no answer. He tried a different house only to receive the same result. 

“Luffy,” Faye called out softly. Luffy huffed in frustration at the lack of response in the town. He refused to watch Faye’s hope be crushed. He moved on to a third house and when he received no answer, he decided to turn the knob and found that the door was unlocked. He made his way inside and found the home to not be abandoned at all.


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter...I have this overwhelming fear that this is going to feel anticlimactic and a friend of mine who read it said it isn't but...I hope I don't disappoint. This is what I had been planning since the very beginning.

"Guys!" Luffy called out after entering the house. "There's people here!" The others head over to the house that Luffy was in and entered it.

Faye was the only one who remained outside. She stood right in front of the house, paralyzed with fear. While this was something that she had been waiting for for decades, years during which she had run several different scenarios in her head, imagining it was completely different from living it in reality.

On the other side of the wall, the four crew members exchanged glances as they observed four people seated on chairs, around a dining table. Their tableware set, but with no food on their plates. They were completely still with their eyes closed. They almost looked like they were sleeping. Luffy, with no hesitation, walked over to the man in the group and shook him lightly.

"Hey, old man," Luffy said, but the body simply slumped over, falling limply against the table. Nami jumped back as his head hit the table while Sanji and Robin's eyes widened. Luffy tilted his head to the side, staring at the body with a furrowed brow as Chopper rushed over to the man. The small doctor checked the man's breathing and heart rate.

"It's like he's in a coma," Chopper said before moving to the woman who was seated on the chair beside him and checking her vitals as well. "This one too." He looked up at the others with a worried look on his face.

"Perhaps that means that they are disembodied souls like Faye," Robin suggested while Chopper moved on to check on a younger woman at the table. Luffy's face looked like he was contemplating something as he placed his hand on his hat, feeling the rough texture that was so familiar to him.

"Faye!" Luffy called out; he wondered why she wasn't there with them—why she wasn't there beside him.

Faye was snapped out of her thoughts when she heard Luffy's voice call out for her. She knew that she couldn't just stand outside forever so she took a deep breath, trying to calm herself and disappeared into thin air, reappearing inside the house next to Luffy. She looked up at him.

"Are they like you?" He asked her. Faye stared at the limp bodies in front of her with wide eyes. She replied to Luffy in a soft voice.

"How am I supposed to—?" She began, but was cut off before she could complete her question by the sudden appearance of a woman; the same one that sat motionless at the table. Chopper froze at the sight while Luffy lit up, his grin widening at the sight. If these people were like Faye then that meant that her own body could be there on that island, or at least something that could lead them to it.

"It's you!" The woman exclaimed as her eyes set themselves on Faye. If they could have, Faye's eyes would have widened more. This woman, whoever she was, was just like her. Faye bit her lip nervously at the sudden situation; but her nervousness was significantly outweighed by her growing hopefulness.

The man that was at the table as well as the younger woman who was sitting across from him also appeared in the room.

"It's...me?" Faye asked. The woman who had spoken to her nodded and then stepped forward to stand right in front of Faye. She grasped onto Faye's hands making the pink-haired woman gasp. She was being touched, she thought. She couldn't feel anything, though. There was no warmth, no cold, nothing. But still, she was being touched. It made her heart swell up with joy.

"What do you mean it's me?" Faye questioned.

"You're the girl that he brought here," answered the man. Faye's breath hitched in her throat at the possible implication of his words.

"He?"

"The man who did this to us!" Said the younger woman. "You have to help us," she begged. "Please." Faye pulled her hand away from the older woman's and took a step back. The joy that she had felt started to fade and anxiety started to overwhelm her. She gripped onto the front of her dress tightly.

"I don't," Faye said quietly and slowly, "understand."

"Oh, we're so sorry," said the older woman as she backed up to give Faye more space. "You probably know what's going on as much as we did in the beginning. Will you hear us out?" Faye turned her head to look over at Luffy who was grinning excitedly. The sight reassured her and helped her calm herself down. She evened out her breathing, let her shoulders fall back down and released the grip on her dress.

"Alright," said Faye.

"We've lost count of how long ago," began the woman. "But one day this man arrived with the body of a girl with pink hair—yours. At first we thought she was just sleeping, but when a few days had passed and she hadn't woken up, we suggested he take her to the town's doctor. When he refused, that's when we started to feel like something was wrong. Then the doctor, worried about the girl, went over to try and convince the man to let him check on her. The doctor persisted and when the man finally got fed up," she paused. "Well, you know what happened. When we found out about it, we had to confront him and eventually, everyone in the town ended up like the doctor—like you."

As Faye heard the story she couldn't help as a guilt started to settle in her heart. She knew that it wasn't really her fault, but it was because he didn't want people getting near her body that they ended up like this: in this fate that she would never wish upon anyone. A deep frown settled on her face.

"Why?" Questioned Faye. "Why would he do that?"

"From what we've gathered over the years," the man in the room responded to her. "It seems that this man ate a devil fruit." Faye nodded, already knowing this information.

"The soul-soul fruit," she stated. The man returned her nod.

"And as with most devil fruit users," he continued, "he couldn't control his abilities at first. We don't know the details, but what we do know is that his lack of control led to him accidentally killing his own daughter." Faye furrowed her brows as she thought back to the memory of the incident from decades ago; she recalled the way that he had addressed her.

"And then years later he sees me," Faye voiced her thoughts. "Me who looks like what his daughter would have looked like had she never died. That explains a lot, actually."

"That's one crazy guy," Nami muttered. Everyone's attention suddenly shifted at the sound of a childish voice.

"Please. Will you help us?" Faye looked down toward where she had heard the voice come from and saw a little girl hugging her leg. There were tears in her eyes which held a look of absolute helplessness.

Faye's eyes widened at the sight and her unjustified guilt doubled. It was one thing to have the people that had been talking to her be in the same situation that she was in. It was a completely different thing to have a child be in that same situation—that was beyond cruel.

Faye forced a smile onto her face.

"Of course we'll help," Faye assured the girl. "We came to find this guy anyway. Right, guys?" She turned her head to look over at everyone else. Chopper was holding back tears; Robin and Nami were frowning, looking both sad and angry; and Sanji looked furious with his hands balled up into fists. All of them nodded their heads, silently agreeing with Faye's statement. And Luffy was grinning.

"Of course we're gonna help!" He shouted determinedly, looking down at the girl. "We'll beat this guy up for what he did!" The little girl sniffled.

"Really?" she asked.

"Really," Faye answered her. The girl let go of Faye's leg and took a few steps back, grinning. Faye felt her heart break at the sight. She realized that she could no longer prioritize getting her body back—she wanted it back, yes, but these people deserved to get their lives back too. If it came down to it, she decided, she'd choose them over herself. If it came down to it, she'd sacrifice herself.

"If you head South," the younger woman began to tell them, "you'll find him. He's in the house at the center of the village. It used to be the mayor's home." She paused. "Your body should be there too."

"Thank you," Faye said before they headed out to where they were told.

When they finally arrived at their destination, they decided to pause before entering.

"Are you ready for this, Faye?" Nami asked the pink-haired woman. Faye didn't answer the question, only able to take a deep, trembling breath.

"Don't worry," Luffy said. Faye looked over at him to see him grinning which, like usual, helped to reassure her. "I'll make sure nothing bad happens." Faye gave him a shaky smile and nodded. She walked forward and into the house while the others followed behind her.

It was awfully quiet inside so they walked around hesitantly unsure of what could be waiting for them. They paused when they heard coughing. Faye's eyes widened at the sound and she froze, but Luffy didn't hesitate to run upstairs toward it, forcing her out of her place.

Luffy heard the coughing coming from a room at the very end of the hallway that the stairs led up to. He rushed forward and entered the room without a second thought.

The first thing he noticed was Faye—pale, eyes closed, and sitting upright on a plush chair, but absolutely still.

"Faye!" He shouted and ran forward. He grabbed the body and pulled it close to his own. He frowned when he felt how cold it was.

"D-d-don't," a raspy voice started from Luffy's right. There was a cough before the voice continued. "T-touch her." Another cough followed. When Luffy looked over he saw an old man on a bed; Luffy had been too focused on the fact that he had finally found Faye's body that he neglected to notice him. The man looked pale and sickly; Luffy screwed his face into a look of confusion at the sight.

"Who are you?" Luffy asked him.

"That's the guy, Luffy," he heard Faye say. He turned to see her, the non-physical form of her, standing at the doorway of the room. The rest of the crew stood behind her. They looked like they wanted to say something, but were holding it in because they knew that this wasn't about them—this was about Faye.

"Though much older," Faye continued. "But then again it has been over 50 years."

As Faye spoke her eyes remained trained on her physical form, laying there limp in Luffy's arms. It was strange to see herself from an outside perspective, but she had difficulty looking away. It was hard to believe—that there was her body, finally, just how she had left it, not having aged a day.

"You've c-come," said the old man; he coughed before continuing. "B-back to me."

Luffy looked at the man with anger raging in his eyes—this was the man. The man who had ruined Faye's life, who made her so unhappy. This frail, old man. And for what?

Faye spoke before Luffy could voice any of his thoughts.

"I've come back," she said and turned to look at him. "But not for you."

"Morgan," he said in a low voice.

"I'm not your damn daughter!" Faye shouted at him, letting her rage begin to overtake her. The man's eyes widened at her tone. He opened his mouth to speak, but was prevented from saying anything by a sudden coughing fit. Chopper, unable to ignore the sick and injured, ran over to him.

A tense silence settled in the room as Chopper checked the old man's health. Faye switched her attention over to Luffy who seemed to be fully focused on her physical form; she wasn't too surprised by that, though. She knew that it must be odd for him to finally see her physically.

Faye watched as Luffy's hand brushed against her body's cheek when he moved some of the hair out of its face. The incorporeal Faye mimicked the action with her own hand and wondered what it would feel like if it was Luffy's instead. The thought made her more anxious for this situation to be resolved already. Faye sighed and then looked back over at the old man.

"He's very ill," Chopper explained to everyone. "He doesn't have long to live."

Faye felt her nerves spike up at his diagnosis. Shank's words from their last conversation echoed in her head—she knew what would happen if the man died; that would be it for her. She would be stuck like that forever; and so would everyone else on that island. Even that little girl. No, thought Faye. She would not let that happen.

"How long?" Faye asked the small doctor.

"At most, a few days," he answered her. "There's not much I can do to prolong it. It really all depends on his willpower."

She watched the man have another coughing fit and she took a deep breath, steeling herself for what was to come. She made eye contact with the old man. His eyes looked dull; it looked like he was tired of living.

"Look," began Faye. "I get it. It hurts a lot to have someone you love die. I can't imagine how much it must hurt to feel like it was your own fault that they did."

"What are you talking about?" Questioned the old man with a cough. "No one—." Faye cut him off. She did not have time for this.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about!" She shouted; the volume of her voice contrasted greatly against his weaker one. Faye paused and lowered her voice back down. "Stop denying what happened. Yes, it hurts you, but...but doing what you're doing accomplishes nothing. It doesn't change the fact that she is dead."

"I really don't know—."

"Stop with that bullshit! You know. You may not want to accept it, but you know. Your daughter is dead. She is not me and I am not her."

"No," he said and squeezed his eyes shut in an attempt to block out the outside world. "She—I mean, you," he paused, starting to get flustered. "Stop talking this nonsense, Morgan. Your father—."

"My name is Faye!" She shouted interrupting him again. "My name is Kaelin Faye. I was born about 70 years ago on a small island in the West Blue. I was born to a family of hat makers, but I decided to leave that behind along with my mother and my younger sister, just so I could become a pirate. I made a name for myself and I had a bounty. I had a bunch of great adventures. And then you came along.

"I was 20. I was going to be 21 in just a few more weeks. I was about to go sell some hats that I had made so that I could buy myself something to eat. But then you came along. You came along with your goddamned self-loathing and guilt and denial and whatever the heck else and took all of that away from me. You ruined my life!"

"No," he rasped.

"And that's all you've been doing! You've been going around ruining lives left and right. Have you no goddamn respect for people? Are you that selfish? None of the people on this island deserved any of this!"

"They tried to," he started, pausing to cough, "take you away from me!" He spoke as loudly as he could.

"I'm not yours to be taken away from! I'm not your daughter! Accept that she's gone!"

"No!"

"Think about all of the things that the people here have missed! They had loved ones elsewhere that have passed away—that they never got to say goodbye to."

"No!" He cried out, in a pleading tone; but Faye continued.

"Children, grandchildren outside of here that they never got to see grow up." Faye sees that the man's eyes are now open; tears are forming in them as he looks at her.

"No," he said in a lower voice.

"There are—," Faye was about to continue but he cut her off.

"You don't get it," he said. "You—." He fell into another coughing fit. "She didn't pass away peacefully! You didn't have to stand there and helplessly watch her scream in pain," he told her in between coughs. Faye's eyes softened at his words. He was right on one point; she didn't understand what that felt like. And she hoped that she never would. What she did understand, though, was that her newfound inch of sympathy for the man would not solve anything.

"How do you think the children here feel?" She asked him. "The children that I'm sure are around the same age that your daughter was. Children whose childhoods have been ripped right out of their grasps. Children who—."

"It's not my fault!"

"It's every bit your fault! You did this. You did everything."

"I—I—," stuttered out the old man. He couldn't take it anymore; that was his breaking point. "I'm sorry," he said while sobbing, which only caused him to break out into another coughing fit. Faye sighed. She was starting to pity the man now too.

"You still have time to make things right," she told him. He looked over at her with pleading eyes; his crying had died down, but now he was starting to wheeze.

"Please," he said. "Please let me ask a favor of you first."

"You have no right to—."

"I know! But please!" He begged. "I'll return everyone back to their bodies. I just want to ask this of you first." Faye frowned, but gave him a nod signaling to him that he could continue. "I do know. I do know what happened, but," he paused to cough. "I am a dying man. I have very little time left in this world. Please. Would you fulfill an old man's dying wish?" Faye looked at him expectantly; waiting to hear what this man's wish could possibly be.

"Let me," he continued. "Let me for just a little longer; let me pretend that you're her." Faye's frown deepened as she watched the pleading man break out into another fit of coughing. She could tell, even without looking, that Luffy and the others were watching her, awaiting her answer.

"Alright," she said after he stopped coughing. "But you have to fix all of this first." Faye turned to look at the crew members that were still standing by the doorway of the room. "When he says he's done so," she said to them, "I want you all to go make sure that everyone here is back to how they should be. If they aren't then let me know." She turned back to look at the man. "If they aren't then I won't go through with the favor."

She turned to address Luffy last. He looked upset and she had a suspicion that it was because she had agreed to fulfill the request of the man who had put her in this situation.

"I want you to go with them too, Luffy," she told him.

"No," he said. "I'm not going to leave you here by yourself."

"Luffy, please. I need to be alone with him for this." Luffy looked unwavering though. "Please," she said again, but in a softer and more pleading tone. It made Luffy's face relax, but a deep frown was still settled on it. "I'll be fine," she assured him.

Luffy didn't say anything. He just switched his gaze from the incorporeal Faye back to the physical one. Faye sighed in relief knowing that that meant that he would comply, even though it would be reluctantly. Faye turned back to the old man and gave him a nod to show him that she was ready. At the gesture he closed his eyes and willed himself to undo everything that he had done.

Faye's ghostly figure suddenly disappeared and everyone's attention turned over to her body. They held their breath, anxiety filling all of them. But it quickly left them when they heard a gasp coming from Faye's body.

Luffy watched her eyes flutter open. Her long pink lashes brushed against each other as she blinked an excessive amount of times before turning to find his own. Her chest rose up and down rapidly like she was trying to catch her breath. He felt her grab onto him, but her grip felt weak.

Faye was glad that the first thing that she saw through her real eyes was Luffy—his dark eyes looking down on her with concern. She could feel the warmth radiating off of his body which made her realize how cold she was. And then she felt an intense pain hit her all at once. Still, she was happy that she could finally feel something.

Chopper was immediately by her side trying to make sure that she was fine.

"I'm fine, Chopper," she told him in a raspy voice while slowly sitting up and out of Luffy's grasp. Actually, she was in pain; she was in a lot of pain, but that wasn't what was important at that moment. "You guys need to go and check on everyone else." Hesitantly, he nodded and headed out with the others leaving Luffy behind with Faye and the old man who remained silent.

Faye stood up with Luffy's help; as soon as she was steady enough on her feet, she proceeded to push Luffy toward the doorway.

"I'll be fine," she said, her voice still gravely. Luffy gave her one last look, expressing his worry to her as much as he could through his eyes, before begrudgingly leaving.

Faye walked on wobbly legs toward the chair by the bed. She moved it slightly and then sat down on it, grateful that she no longer needed to use her strength to stand up. She felt weak and it was taking all of the energy that she had just to cope with the pain that was still wracking her body. It felt like she was being torn apart from the inside. She was sure that trying to ignore the pain was not a good idea.

But she was going to keep her word. Even after what this man had done, he deserved that much.

Faye grasped the man's right hand in between both of hers. Were she not mentally occupied with the pain pulsating through her body, she would be relishing in the fact that she could finally have some form of physical contact with another person.

"Don't worry, darling," the old man wheezed out. "I'm so glad that you're by my side, Morgan. I can die a happy man knowing that you're alright. I don't need to hold on for you anymore." Faye frowned sadly at his words. His voice had faded away at the end of his sentence. It wasn't long before she heard his breathing stop and then his hand go limp in hers. She shakily let go of it.

Her eyes filled with tears as she felt her chest constrict in pain. Her heart beat at a speed that she knew was faster than normal. Sweat trickled down her skin as it grew harder and harder to breathe. The room started to spin and her vision started to grow blurry. And then she fell sideways, collapsing on the floor and curling into herself as she writhed in pain.

Some distance away, Sanji, Robin, and Nami, after being instructed on what to do by Chopper, swiftly moved between the townspeople and treated them as best as they could. At the same time, Luffy helped to move the people, but his mind was distracted. His thoughts still lay with Faye. He was happy that they had finally found her body; happy that he was finally able to fulfill his promise to her, but he had a bad feeling about everything.

Luffy wasn't one to do so, but this was making him worry. It was making him worry about her.

"Luffy!" Chopper shouted. The pirate captain turned to the reindeer.

"Huh?" He asked.

"It's everyone!" Chopper shouted, looking distraught. "Everyone is suffering from incredibly severe shock!" Luffy tilted his head, not understanding why Chopper was telling him this. "That means Faye must be too!" Chopper clarified.

Luffy's eyes widened at the realization. He may not have understood the medical condition or whatever it was that Chopper was talking about, but he could understand that these people were in pain. Luffy grabbed Chopper by his backpack and pulled him along as he ran as fast as he could back toward the house that they had left Faye in.

When they finally got to Faye, Luffy was struck with panic. They found her curled up on the floor, whimpering. Chopper immediately rushed over to her to treat her while Luffy just stood there, unable to do anything—and that killed him. His heart started to race. He couldn't ignore that nagging fear telling him that she might die. Luffy didn't want that. He had finally gotten her; he refused to lose her now.

But it wasn't not like he could do anything about it. All he could do was stand there and watch. He felt so useless and he hated it.

His eyes traveled over to the old man, now cold and lifeless on the bed where Luffy had last seen him. Was she in pain, he wondered. Had she been in pain the entire time and not told them anything? Had she been in pain like she was at that moment when she had pushed him out and told him she'd be fine? God, he felt like an idiot. He should have realized it, he told himself. He should have been more adamant about staying. He should have stayed.

But why would she even do that? Why would she put herself through that pain? She gained nothing out of it. She knew that she wouldn't. It was a stupid question though. Luffy knew the answer because he knew her. He had no doubt that she had wanted the man's last moments to be pleasant. That she wanted to keep her word. That she wanted—why did she have to be so kind, Luffy thought to himself. It was a defining quality of hers and something that Luffy had always greatly appreciated about her personality; but in that moment he cursed her kindness for the first time. Maybe if she wasn't so kind—

"Everything's going to be okay," Chopper said as he looked up at Luffy. Luffy sighed in relief as he saw that Faye was now laying still on the floor. Her face was calm and her breathing was even. He felt his muscles begin to relax. "Alright, you should take her back to the ship so she can rest. I'll go make sure everyone else is fine," Chopper told his captain. Luffy nodded at his words and picked up the unconscious woman.

Lifting her up, he realized how small and light she was. Her skin was pale and felt soft when it touched his own. She seemed so frail, he thought. It just made him feel even more like he needed to protect her. He held onto her tightly, bringing her close to him.

He could never have imagined how glad and how relieved he would be to finally be able to hold her in his arms. He couldn't wait until she woke up. He wasn't sure why, but he was eager to look at her bright eyes again; he was eager to see her smile and hear her laugh while back in her body. He wondered if it would sound more vibrant than before.  
But he would just have to wait to find out.

[Several Days Later]

Faye groaned as she felt her muscles ache. She wondered what the heck was going on.

The first that she noticed was something smooth underneath her hands. When she tightened her fingers around it, it felt rough and soft at the same time. Like a piece of cloth, she thought.

The second thing that she noticed was a musky scent. It surrounded her completely, making her feel calm and safe. And it had...undertones of meat? That was strange, she thought. And with that thought, she finally opened her eyes. She sat up with another groan at the pain that her body was in.

The third thing that she noticed was the clothes that she was wearing. She easily recognized them as belonging to Luffy. Why was she wearing Luffy's clothes, she thought. And did that scent enveloping her belong to him? Well there was that underlying smell of meat so, it only made logical sense. She heard snoring coming from her left and turned toward it where she noticed the fourth thing.

The fourth thing she noticed was Luffy, leaning back on a chair with his head bobbing up and down, fast asleep. She watched him sleep for a moment with a smile on her face. She had always found it pleasant to see him so quiet and peaceful for a change. And then it finally hit her.

The fifth thing that she noticed was everything.

Her eyes widened as she realized that she was feeling and smelling and touching; as she realized that she was a physical being again. She grinned and started to tear up at the overwhelming joy that filled her heart. She quickly turned around to get off of the bed; it hurt her to move, but how she loved that pain for it had been decades since she had felt any. Similarly, she loved the feeling of the cold hardwood floor against her feet and the chill that run up her spine at the contact. She loved the feeling of the cold air against her skin and the material of the clothing that she wore brushing against it. She started to twirl around, squeals escaping her mouth as she found herself unable to hold in her excitement.

The action woke up Luffy. He was groggy at first; then worried when he didn't see her in the bed; then joyful when he turned toward the sounds of excitement to see a twirling Faye.

"Faye!" He exclaimed. "I'm so happy that you're awake!" He grinned at her.

"You're happy?" She asked him. "I'm happy. No. I'm beyond happy. I'm ecstatic!" She ran toward Luffy and jumped into his arms; she wrapped her arms around him, delighted to finally be able to embrace him.

She looked up at him, bouncing up and down on the floor, and squealed again. The excitement that filled her heart was overwhelming; everything—her senses, her emotions—felt like they were on overdrive. She didn't know if she could neither handle nor control them. She needed to see things, feel things, do things. She needed everything.

She quickly, gently pressed her lips against Luffy's, running out of the clinic with a need to experience everything. She was immediately hit by the smell of the sea; salty and filling every inch of the ship; the rough wood against her bare feet as she ran across the deck felt amazing; and the warm wind that hit her skin felt absolutely perfect. Even the sounds around her felt more realy than they ever had before: the sound of the waves lapping against the side of the ship was one of the most beautiful sounds that she had ever heard; and the cries of the seagulls that flew overhead filled her ears in a way that was pleasant even in it's obnoxiousness.

She saw Sanji rush toward her shouting "Faye-swan~" ready to embrace her, only to be hit by Nami. Faye laughed at the sight. She couldn't wipe off the grin that overtook her face and the grew couldn't help but find her euphoria contagious.

"Oh! Sanji!" She called out to the chef.

"Yes, Faye-swan~?" He asked, twirling over to her.

"Could you make me some food? I've always wanted to taste your food! It always looks so amazing. And gosh, I haven't had anything to eat in decades!"

"Of course!" Sanji exclaimed. "I shall prepare the best meal for you~!" As he headed to the kitchen, she ran over to Chopper and embraced him as hard as she could. She rubbed her cheek against his.

"I always wondered how soft you were," she told him. "But you're even softer than I ever imagined."

"Faye!" Chopper shouted. "You need to relax. Your body just underwent a serious amount of stress! You need to take things slowly!" Faye pouted at the doctor's command.

"Fine," she murmured out reluctantly. She let go of Chopper and sat down cross-legged on the deck next to him. She smiled as she focused on all of the smells and sounds that surrounded her—especially the sounds of the rowdy crew. She looked at each of them so happy. They were all there except—

'Wait,' she thought to herself as her experiences over the last couple of minutes finally caught up to her. 'Don't tell me I actually just kissed Luffy.' The memory flashed in her mind. 'I totally just kissed Luffy.' Faye's face blanched at the realization.

"Fuck," she muttered under her breath.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was originally considering an alternate ending where the man dies before Faye gets her body back so she spends the rest of Luffy's life in the hat. And when he grows old she asks him to burn the hat because she doesn't want to be stuck like that forever and if she wanted to disappear at anyone's hands she would want it to be him. And he would reluctantly fulfil her wish. But ain't that awfully sad? :D Don't worry, you guys will get a happy ending.


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have seen that some have expressed interest in the alternate, sad ending that I had been considering. So I'm considering writing it and posting it at the end when this story is finished. Ehehe. If you too would like to see it, I would love to know!
> 
> Also, if anyone is confused about the ages:  
> Faye was 20 when she lost her body and it hasn't aged since (it's a consequence of the devil fruit). She has existed without her body since around the time during which Gol D. Roger was a rookie, which was about 50 years or so before the current time of this story. Luffy became King of the Pirates at the age of 21; he is currently 22. So Faye is technically about 70 years old which is why Shanks teased her about her being too old for Luffy. I hope that clears anything up.

Faye had decided that the best solution to her stupid, stupid action was to just avoid the source of the consequence—in other words, if she avoided Luffy, then he wouldn't get the chance to bring up the fact that she had kissed him. It seemed like a perfectly sound plan in her head. And avoiding him didn't prove to be too hard for her; at least, for the thirty minutes that she had been doing it for.

Faye knew that this wasn't going to end well.

"The food was even more wonderful that I ever could have imagined, Sanji!" Faye told the cook as she finished the last bite of the meal that he had prepared for her.

"Faye-swama is so kind~," he said. "I will make any dish that you desire, my dear~." Faye giggled at his words.

She jumped when she felt a hand touch her shoulder and relaxed when she saw that it was only Nami. This avoiding-Luffy thing, she realized, was really taking away from the enjoyment of having her senses back.

"I'm sorry," said Nami. "I didn't mean to scare you."

"Oh, it's fine," Faye told her. "I guess I'm just getting used to everything is all." Faye avoided eye-contact with the ginger as she lied.

"Ah, I was gonna head over to take a shower," Nami said. "And since you technically haven't taken one in over fifty years..."

"It sounds so unsanitary when you put it that way," Faye said with a chuckle.

"So do you wanna join me?"

"It would be my pleasure~," Sanji said as he twirled around. Blood started to drip from his nose.

"Stop picturing us naked!" Nami shouted as she landed a punch right on top of his head. She turned her attention back to Faye. Faye gave her a nod and stood up, following the navigator out of the kitchen.

The feeling of water beating down against her skin definitely fell toward the top of the list of things that she had missed. Faye stood still in the large bathroom as she focused on the feeling of the wet tiles beneath her feet and the warm water slipping across her skin. She exhaled heavily before stepping away from the direct stream of water and running her hands through her soaked hair.

"It hasn't grown at all," she said.

"Hmm?" Nami questioned.

"My hair hasn't grown," Faye clarified. "It's so strange. It's as if my body has been frozen in time."

"Well, consider that a good thing!" Said Nami with a large smile. "You look really good for a 70-year-old. Not a wrinkle in sight." The two girls laughed at the comment. "Come on, I'll wash your back," Nami said softly.

There was silence for a few moments while Faye concentrated on the feeling of the rough sponge against her skin.

"Too bad it didn't reverse time too, though," Nami added after a while.

"Hmm? Why?" Faye asked.

"Well, it would have gotten rid of those awful scars." Faye furrowed her brow.

"Scars? What scars?" She questioned

"Umm. The ones on your back." Nami replied. Faye turned around quickly to face Nami.

"You're joking, right?" She asked. "Because I've never had any scars on my back." Nami shook her head causing Faye to frown. Nami looked at her worriedly.

"You don't think that—," began Nami, but she stopped when Faye shook her head.

"That man loved his daughter too much; he wouldn't have hurt this body in any way." Faye sighed. "What do they look like?" She turned around so that Nami could see them again.

"There's three of them and they look like they're from really deep cuts," she told Faye.

Nami traced her fingers down from the top of the scars, in between her shoulder blades, to the bottom, right at the end of her back. Faye furrowed her brow and reached her hand as far down her back as she could to touch the top of the scars.

"They go so far down," Faye murmured. Nami took a step back.

"If it wasn't that man then how could this have happened?" Faye bit her lip as she racked her brain for an explanation. She thought back to everything that she knew about the soul-soul fruit while continuing to run her fingers across the top of the scars.

She knew that the fruit allowed the user to relocate a person's soul into an object. And that the only way to undo that was if the user chose to do so. If the user died before they undid it then all hope was lost for any who had been affected by the devil fruit. And if the object was—

"Oh," Faye said.

"What is it?" Nami asked her.

"I think I know what happened." Nami waited for her to explain. "Do you remember when you first joined Luffy's crew?" She asked as she turned back around to face Nami.

"Yeah," Nami said with a nod.

"Then you remember Buggy." Nami nodded. "And you remember what happened during Luffy's fight with Buggy." Nami looked confused for a moment, but then her eyes widened in realization.

"No way," Nami said breathily. Faye nodded.

"It has to be. If the object that a person's soul is trapped in is destroyed then that person's life is over; so it would only make sense that if that object were damaged in any way..."

"That's ridiculous!" Exclaimed Nami. Faye shrugged and sighed.

"Nami," she began, looking at the ginger very seriously.

"Yeah?"

"I need you to promise me something." Nami looked at Faye expectantly. "Promise me," began Faye. "Promise me that you won't tell Luffy. I can't let him find out about this. He'll only blame himself for being unable to protect me."

'Great,' Faye thought. 'Another reason to avoid Luffy.' Nami looked unsure about making the promise, but eventually gave in.

"Alright," Nami said. "I'll promise." Faye's face lit up.

"Thank you."

Luffy wasn't sure how exactly to process what had just happened.

He had been sleeping; had been woken up by Faye's excitement; had felt his heart swell at the fact that she was finally conscious; had gladly returned her hug—and then she had kissed him.

He didn't know how to even begin to process that action.

Sure, he may have known what a kiss was, but he had never actually kissed anyone. Why would he have? It had nothing to do with becoming king of the pirates or meat. He had never had any interest in that kind of stuff before so—

He didn't know why she had done it. He didn't know if he wanted to. Did it matter? He wasn't sure. And the more that he thought about it, the less sure that he was.

What did it even mean anyway?

Sure, he had seen people kiss before, but he had never really paid any attention to the action. He knew that it wasn't something that you did with just anyone. It was something that you only did with someone who was special, but how special did they need to be? What kind of special?

Luffy's head was starting to hurt.

He decided not to think about it for a while. Maybe he could ask someone about it later—Zoro? Nami?

When he exited the clinic, he found Faye sitting down on the lawn of the ship and talking with Nami. He grinned as he saw her laughing as her hair waved in the wind. She looked so happy.

He started walking toward the pair, but when Faye's eyes flickered over and caught sight of him, her smile fell. She quickly said something to Nami and walked over to Franky just as Luffy had arrived at his destination. He frowned.

He stood in that spot for some time, just watching her with a pout, until Nami finally noticed his presence.

"Luffy," she called out to him. Luffy looked down at her.

"What?" He asked her.

"Why are you frowning?" Nami asked him. "Is everything alright?" Luffy sat down next to her as he continued to watch Faye walk around and talk with the rest of the crew members. It was making him very upset.

"Faye is over there," he said with a pout.

"Well, yeah. So?"

"But I'm over here." Nami raised an eyebrow.

"So go over there." Luffy shook his head at her suggestion. "Why not?" She asked him.

"When I came here, she left when she saw me. So, I think, she's gonna do that again."

"Ah," said Nami and sighed. She assumed that Faye must have been avoiding him because of her discovery of the scar.

"I really want her to be here with me instead of all the way over there with everyone else." Nami froze for a second.

"Wait, Luffy," she said causing Luffy to look over at her. "Are you jealous?" Luffy shrugged not really understanding the concept of jealousy.

"I don't know. But I feel lonely without her here." Luffy took his straw hat off of his head and stared at it in his hands. "She promised me that as long as I had this hat, I would never be alone. I know she got her body back now, and I'm happy she did, but I still have the hat so I shouldn't be alone."

"But you're not alone, Luffy," Nami said softly. "You have the whole crew here." Luffy shook his head.

"It's not the same."

"What do you mean?"

"It's not the same being with everyone else and being with Faye." Luffy furrowed his brow and he continued. "I don't get it, but, it's different with her." Nami's eyes widened at the confession. And then a mischievous look settled in them as a smirk appeared on her face. She knew that things were going to get very interesting very soon.

Avoiding Luffy was difficult for Faye; not because he was constantly chasing after her, but because everytime she saw him with the corner of her eye, he wore this cute pout that killed her with guilt.

She also knew that she couldn't avoid him forever so at a point she decided to stop trying. And that led to her sitting on the swing under the tangerine trees while she watched Luffy approaching with that same pout on his face that she had been seeing.

"You broke your promise," was the first thing that he said to her. Faye furrowed her brow in confusion.

"What?" She asked him as he sat down on the grass beside her.

"You promised that as long as I had this hat..."

"You'd never be alone," Faye finished. "I'm sorry, Luffy." She hung her head down in shame, letting her hair cover her face.

"It was stupid of me to avoid you all day, but—."

"It's okay," said Luffy. Faye looked up and over to see that he was grinning. "You apologized so it's okay. As long as you don't break it again." Faye smiled at those words.

"I promise that I won't," she told him, grinning back at him. She sighed in relief sensing that he wasn't going to bring up the kiss. She switched her gaze from him to the deck that lay before her. "We're gonna go see Shanks now, right?" She asked him.

"Yup! Now that we got your body back, I gotta give Shanks his hat back!"

"I can't wait!" Faye said happily. "It'll be nice to finally be able to give him a big hug." Luffy pouted at that.

"Weren't you happy when you gave me one?" He asked. Faye looked over at him and laughed at the face that he was making.

"Of course, Luffy. But I'll also be happy to give him one too."

"Faye," he whined. Faye shook her head with a smile on her face.

"Hey! You were the first person I hugged. And I'm very happy that you were the first." Luffy grinned at that. "Luffy, can I ask you for a favor?" She asked after a moment of silence.

"Of course!" Luffy told her.

"There's somewhere I'd really like to go after we see Shanks."

"Where?" Faye looked down at her hands and smiled fondly as a few memories flowed into her mind.

"I wanna go back to my home. I'm not sure if my family is still there or if they're..." She paused. "If they're still alive. But I still wanna go." Luffy looked at her with a curious expression on his face. He found himself wanting to know what she was thinking about.

"Of course, Faye," he told her. "It'll be fun to see where you grew up." Faye gave him another grin.

"Thanks, Luffy," she said. "You're the best." Luffy smiled widely at her words. He really liked it when Faye complimented him because it always made him feel really nice inside.

"I really hope you like it there," she said. "It can be pretty boring sometimes, but the weather's always really nice; and there's this awesome lake. If you go there right after it rains, you'll see a double rainbow; every single time."

Luffy grinned as Faye continued to talk. There was this certain spark in her eyes as she spoke that made it difficult for him to look away. He had never seen her that happy before and he felt proud that he had had some part in causing that feeling. He hoped that it never died down. And if it did, he thought, he would do anything in his power to bring it back.


End file.
